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Australia: Australia’s first social enterprise hotel, Hotel Etico, will boost its hospitality training for young people with disabilities due to a partnership with Schwartz Family Company and Trilogy Hotels.
Hotel Etico will relocate its training academy to the campus of the Blue Mountains International Hotel Management School (BMIHMS) in Leura, New South Wales.
The move will place its Academy of Independence alongside BMIHMS, owned by Torrens University Australia, and near the Schwartz-owned Leura Gardens Resort.
The partnership, due to begin in October 2025, will create what Schwartz Family Company director Dr Jerry Schwartz calls an “integrated resort village” combining vocational training, higher education, inclusive employment, and operating hotels on a single campus.
“This will provide the best possible hotel education facilities while students are fully immersed in an operating hotel, while benefitting from an education program that will deliver passionate, well-trained, and motivated graduates to the industry, which is hindered by a current talent shortage.
“Students from the Blue Mountains International Hospitality School and Hotel Etico will have hands-on pathways into their hospitality careers and learn in the best environment. This partnership demonstrates the hospitality industry’s commitment to attracting the very best talent and fostering true inclusion. Disability is a strength and asset; the campus will serve as a model for Australia and the wider industry,” he added.
Trilogy Hotels, which manages Leura Gardens Resort and the nearby Fairmont Resort, will provide recruitment pathways for Hotel Etico and BMIHMS graduates.
Hotel Etico also plans a second training campus in Canberra, working with Schwartz Family Company and Trilogy Hotels at the Mercure Hotel Canberra.
Trilogy Hotels CEO, Scott Boyes, said: “This is the first partnership of its kind in Australia integrating vocational training, higher education, inclusive employment, and hotel operations all on a single campus. It empowers a new generation of industry professionals, across all abilities and backgrounds. We believe the Leura Campus will be a beacon of social enterprise, education excellence, and real-life learning for hospitality careers.”
Highlights
• Hotel Etico has partnered with BMIHMS, Schwartz Family Company, and Trilogy Hotels to offer training for young people with disabilities.
• Hotel Etico has announced the relocation of its training academy to Leura in October 2025.
• The new campus has integrated vocational training, higher education, and hotel operations.
• Trilogy Hotels has created career pathways for graduates of both institutions.
• Hotel Etico has planned a second training campus in Canberra.
