Last week, Team Domenica was proud to attend the 2025 Inclusion Summit, and inclusion in Awards, marking our second year at these inspiring events. The day brought together leaders from across hospitality, travel, leisure and retail to celebrate progress, share insights and champion inclusion in action.

Our partnership with WiHTL & Diversity in Retail (DiR) has been truly transformative – not only in raising awareness of learning disability inclusion, but also in creating direct opportunities for our candidates and staff.

Celebrating Collaboration

At the summit, we reflected on how much this partnership has achieved. Through WiHTL & DiR’s extraordinary network, our collaboration has delivered key opportunities for awareness, high-quality training, and vital support towards our new centre. Greg van Heeswijk, Team Domenica’s Director of Fundraising and Communications, spoke at the event and shared his appreciation for the partnership so far:

We were delighted to attend and speak at the 2025 WiHTL Inclusion Summit: Opportunities for All, and Inclusion in Awards, yesterday. The partnership has been absolutely transformative for Team Domenica, offering guidance and training for our staff, awareness-raising opportunities, and over £137,000 towards the development of our new centre, Pavilion Buildings. Most importantly, the network has provided our young people with a range of opportunities.

Greg van Heeswijk, Director of Fundraising and Communications

We are so grateful to everyone at WiHTL & DiR, and the Members of their Collaboration Community, who have helped change the lives of our young people with learning disabilities and autism.

Partnerships that open doors

A major highlight of our partnership has been the 23 candidates who have already benefited from work experience, supported internships and paid employment with leading employers from the WiHTL & DiR network. This list includes placements with: Elior UK, ODEON, Compass Group, Hilton, Nando’s, Moto Hospitality, Whitbread, Coop Group and Sodexo.

These experiences help our candidates gain confidence and skills, whilst demonstrating the value of diverse workplaces. If you are an employer who is looking to join our movement, and discover the benefits of inclusive employment, click here to find out how you can get involved.

Highlights from our partnership

Our partnership has also sparked exciting collaborations with individual organisations. Watches of Switzerland, for example, are now serving Team Domenica coffee in their Brighton stores. Our team – led by candidate Sean – also provided in-house training to their staff, teaching them how to make the perfect coffee. The Watches of Switzerland Group has also made a significant contribution to our capital appeal, helping us move closer to opening our new training centre.

Members of WiHTL & DiR’s Collaboration Community are also supporting the fit-out of our new public-facing hospitality space. This includes Elior UK who continue to set a strong example of dedication and inclusion. In addition to offering internships and employment opportunities, the catering group have been supporting the development of our new kitchen, where staff and candidates will prepare high-quality, seasonal dishes for visitors to enjoy.