In a longitudinal case study of apprentices, the term proximal participation was coined to describe the entry process of young people, with unclear career destinations, into the trade of baking. This article unravels the significance of proximal participation in the decision-making processes of young people who enter a trade through initial engagement in ancillary work roles. These ancillary jobs could be generically applied to a range of hospitality related trades. However, proximal participation provided the research participants with the opportunity to preview a specific trade not as 'legitimate peripheral participants' but as participants who were employed in the same workplace doing work that was a support role to the actual trade/craft practice community. Therefore, an exploration of proximal participation may contribute to a wide range of vocational and professional occupations whereby proximal participants migrate to 'legitimate peripheral participation' after initial proximal interaction. © 2013 The Vocational Aspect of Education Ltd.
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