Hairdressing apprenticeships - building the foundations

Few would argue that an apprenticeship is the best way to learn a trade. To celebrate National Apprenticeship Week, Hji will be exploring the world of apprenticeships for the next five days, hearing from trainees themselves, talking to employers about the joys and challenges of employing apprenticeships and looking at how the apprenticeship landscape is changing. In England apprenticeships have come under the spotlight, with industry Trailblazers, a group of specialists working with government to revise the apprenticeship models, resulting in the Department of Education giving its backing to a number of reforms which could prove advantageous to salon businesses in England. This certainly looks like good news for employers. Hellen Ward, chair of the hairdressing arm of Trailblazers, believes the result is a much clearer alternative pathway to those who do not feel the conventional education route is right for them. “Re-writing the standards from an end-user and employer perspective should make training in our industry less about funding and more about quality,” says Hellen. “Any prospective apprentice needs to be given a clear outline and expectation of what their training and an apprenticeship will involve. Our businesses, salon owners and managers will be given a much clearer idea of what they need to be offering by way of training and education to get there apprentices salon ready which in turn will offer greater benefits to the longevity and growth of their own companies. According to Hilary Hall, chief executive, National Hairdressers’ Federation investment in the apprenticeship model was much needed. “Apprentices are the future of our industry,” says Hilary. “Apprenticeships are the best way of getting the practical skills needed to work in a salon, and also the really important ‘soft’ skills, like being able to talk to clients and work as part of a team.  That’s why the Trailblazer group of employers has spent so much time and effort in developing new, tougher, apprenticeship standards which also include end-point assessment, similar to a trade test, to make sure apprentices are ‘salon ready’ by the end of their programme.” In Scotland funding has remained stagnant for a number of years and many employers would like to see a review of the situation. What also remains an issue in the UK as a whole is the lack of support from schools in promoting hairdressing as a viable career for young people, and from Government in recognizing that older apprentices cost business more than younger starters. Says Catherine Gill, director at Scottish-based training provider, Athena Learning Ltd “Employers in Scotland are reporting a difficulty recruiting the right candidate for the job. Schools are encouraging young people to stay on longer and then often directing them to full- time college courses rather than seek an apprenticeship. This means that they leave college at 19 and are not job ready but are entitled to the minimum wage for their age group. Minimum wage restrictions mean that salons need the apprentice to be productive by their 19^th birthday and funding restrictions would mean that they would have reduced funding for their L3 (SCQF L6).” Continues Catherine: “Raising the profile of apprenticeships and hairdressing as a career to schools, young people and their parents would encourage more people to enter the industry. Making young people aware that hairdressing is a career rather than a job with the future earning potential linked to this would help.”