Two hundred new jobs are being created for UK workers in an innovative horticulture industry pilot programme.

As part of the programme participants will receive free training with a guaranteed job at the end, paying an average of £200 to £450 a week, depending on the role, for those who successfully complete the course.

The scheme is being run by licensed labour provider HOPS Labour Solutions. Operations manager at the firm, Laura Savage, explained: “It’s taken some time to bring all of the pieces of the puzzle together, but with the support of the minister for employment’s working party, LANTRA, the NFU, Jobcentre Plus, The National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs, City & Guilds, agricultural colleges, and most importantly our client farms that have created the 200 jobs for our pilot programme, we can now finally offer this exceptional training, job and career opportunity to UK workers.”

All the roles will also offer performance-related wages so that workers could earn approximately £300 a week, while some exceptional workers could earn as much as £550 or more a week.

Savage said that although these are temporary roles, due to the intense demand for good workers in this country, candidates looking for regular work throughout the year and who are prepared to move where the job takes them could ultimately find themselves in full-time permanent work.

HOPS is becoming a City & Guilds-approved Training Centre in order to offer all UK workers a pre-employment training programme which will be a mandatory part of the recruitment process.

James Neilson, operations manager at The Co-operative Group, welcomed the programme. He said: “The new HOPS scheme provides the right platform to highlight the varied and rewarding opportunities that exist in the horticultural and agricultural sectors and, more importantly, to help UK farmers attract UK talent into

the industry.”

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