Training
Staff training is vital to satisfy compliance issues and stay up-to-date on the latest rules and regulations. Training can help businesses improve their productivity and competitiveness by ensuring that employees have the right skills to do the best job.
In this section we aim to give you, our members, an intelligent signpost to help you define ways to make the best possible use of the resources available to you. However, if you have any questions - please call us on 01252 515001 and we will be able to assist you directly.
Click below to read the advice guides:
Qualifications and Funding
There are qualifications available for all ages, levels of experience and types of retail business. To help you understand the range of qualifications, the Skillsmart Retail Skillsmap shows everyone, both inside and outside the industry, what skills are needed to work in retail and how to map their way through the sector. Also available is a leaflet explaining the different types of qualification.
Click here to go to the Skillsmap: http://www.skilsure.net/skillsmart/Modules/skillsmart/chart.php?job_id=23
There are three categories of retail qualifications. These are job related qualifications, license to practicequalifications and getting into retail qualifications. A breakdown of each one in more detail is below. (Source: Skillsmart Retail)
Job Related Qualifications
Award/Certificate/Diploma in Retail Knowledge: Retail Knowledge qualifications do exactly what they say. They cover the retail knowledge needed for selling, service, team working, health & safety, dealing with theft and product knowledge for specific product areas such as chilled food, newspapers, garden retail, beauty, fashion, builders’ merchants and many others. The knowledge required for these qualifications can be delivered by any method, for example in-house training or through a retail skills shop, online or using a workbook.
Award/Certificate/Diploma in Retail Skills: Retail Skills is the competence-based qualification for retail store operations which is achieved in the workplace and recognises what people can do. Developed from the UK occupational standards for retail, which are based on real working practices, these qualifications can be totally embedded within a company’s normal training and development process. They are structured so that staff can achieve recognition for a general retail sales role or specialist roles such as beauty consultant, butcher, fashion stylist or visual merchandiser.
Retail Apprenticeships: This programme comprises four qualifications and is suitable for retail staff, sales professionals, visual merchandisers, specialist and first line managers. The programme of learning can be tailored to fit different types of retail business and job roles. Apprenticeships include the retail competence-based and knowledge-based qualifications detailed above together with literacy and numeracy and are delivered in the workplace. Some additional support may be required if the apprentice has literacy or numeracy
training needs.
Foundation Degree in Retailing: The Foundation Degree in Retailing is a unique and valuable higher level qualification for the retail sector and has been developed in partnership with a wide spectrum of retail employers. This qualification is for managers in store operations wishing to extend their knowledge of the retail industry. Study for the qualification is carried out part-time whilst at work primarily through distance learning and can be completed in two calendar years.
Licence to Practice Qualifications
Awards in Food Safety: Food safety is a compliance issue and these qualifications will ensure that your food handlers and their supervisors are trained and qualified to meet FSA requirements. Based on UK occupational standards developed by retailers, these one- or two-day courses meet the sector’s expectations.
Getting into Retail Qualifications
Diploma in Retail Business: The Diploma in Retail Business comprises a number of qualifications. It launched inSeptember 2010 and offers young people in full-time education an applied and practical programme alongside traditional academic qualifications such as GCSEs and A Levels. Learners will study retail from product sourcing through to sales and the key retail processes in between. The Diploma will raise the profile of retail as a career of choice and provide retail businesses with talented and skilled new recruits who have made an informed choice to work in the business of retail. Achievement of the level 3 qualification attracts UCAS tariff points.
Where to Go for Help
Skillsmart Retail
Skillsmart Retail is is the skills sector council which are which are licensed by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills. There are 25 Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) and Skillsmart is the Retail SSC. Each SSC is an employer-led, independent organisation that covers a specific sector across the UK. Skillsmart Retail works to support the needs of small and independent retailers by providing them with access to practical and affordable training solutions, all of which are aimed at providing real value to a business. Whether it’s increasing productivity, improving staff retention or reducing wastage, all the skills-related products and services are designed to improve your business and ultimately increase your bottom line.
Click here to go to the Skillsmart Retail website for more information.
National Skills Academy for Retail - Skill Shops
The National Skills Academy for Retail has been set up with considerable employer support in response to the growing demand for a skilled workforce. It will oversee a network of one-stop, walk-in and web-based retail skills shops on high streets and in shopping centres across the UK, all run by local partners including developers, training providers, Jobcentre Plus and retailers.
All will deliver a range of core services aimed at driving a step change in retail skills, including pre-employment training, Apprenticeships, retail customer service programmes and the Diploma in Retail Business.
About the National Skills Academy for Retail
Courses
Retail Plus (C-Store Ready Accredited)
The Skills Store offer a training package, Retail Plus, which consists of easy-to-use workbooks designed to help increase sales and raise productivity within convenience stores. Content is written with support from retail clients and experts in the fields of Health & Safety, environmental health and trading standards,a nd successful completion leads to nationally recognised qualifications. Go to www.retailplus-uk.com for more information.
Industry Training with IGD
It’s no secret that the key to attaining competitive advantage is people. A skilled, motivated, collaborative team is at the heart of any successful organisation. For over 100 years IGD has delivered training and development tailored to people at all levels of the food and grocery industry. Today, they continue to help individuals to advance their careers and companies to grow sales, reduce costs and lower their environmental impact.
From practical workshops to in-house training. From entry-level overviews to cross-functional, long-term learning programmes. IGD's aim is to be a lifelong partner helping you to build competitive advantage via the skills in your business.
The IGD Academy brings all this activity under one roof, making it even easier for you and your team to tailor a programme to your needs.
For more information on the training courses that IGD provide, visit their website here.
Leading Edge
Leading Edge is the IGD Academy's free development and networking forum for the food and grocery industry. They offer a wide range of free training, insight and networking events for their members. Membership of Leading Edge is free, and they run a range of free events across the country on subjects like public speaking, fresh thinking and trading strategies. Links to their events are below.
Project Management: www.leadingedge.igd.com/projectmanagement
Public Speaking: www.leadingedge.igd.com/publicspeaking
Trading Relationships: www.leadingedge.igd.com/tradingrelationships
Fresh Thinking: www.leadingedge.igd.com/freshthinking
Think Global: www.leadingedge.igd.com/thinkglobal
Accessing Funding - are you eligible?
ACS members can take advantage of a new service from ACS which provides an instant report of exactly what funding you are entitiled to for training, along with any other funding you might need. Ring Hannah Williams on 01252 515001 to use this facitlity if you require funding for a business project.
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