BRC Learning

Last month saw the 12^th Annual National Apprenticeship Week bringing together the whole of the apprenticeship community and BRC Learning were excited to be part of the celebration.  This year’s theme was Blaze a Trail and throughout the week we saw many fantastic opportunities that an apprenticeship brings to employers, individuals and the economy.

Our celebration included examples of how leading retailers are waking up to the benefits of apprenticeships and our top 5 takeaways from the week were as follows:

1. Can retailers really afford to ignore apprenticeships?

Our guest blog from Keith Smith, Apprenticeship Director, Education and Skills Funding Agency asked if retailers can really afford to ignore apprenticeships. For employers who have apprentices, an impressive 96 percent say they have experienced at least one benefit from taking on apprentices, and most can count at least eight benefits. Read the full blog here

2. Co-op’s successful Apprenticeship journey

We learnt from Lloyd Thomas, Apprenticeship Partner at the Co-op that since relaunching their apprenticeship programme in 2011, Co-op have had more than 4500 colleagues either start their working life with them or beginning a new chapter in their careers. They have created a work environment where their colleagues can thrive and where, irrespective of their background, they can enjoy access to varied, broad and diverse careers. Read Co-op’s inspiring apprenticeship story here.

3. What it takes to be a pioneering retail leader from Jill McDonald, MD of Clothing & Home at Marks and Spencer 

To help prepare retail's emerging talent for tomorrow's world, we asked Jill McDonald about her life, her role, how the company innovates in career development and the skills needed to be a retail leader. Here's what she said: 

4. How Paige Twidale balances her full-time role as Deputy Store General Manager at Asda, Halifax, whilst studying for a degree apprenticeship and being a mum

Find out how she manages all of this and what drives her to keep going. Watch Paige's story below.

5. The future is bright for Retail Apprenticeships

A survey of retailers by the British Retail Consortium found that 94% of retailers plan to increase the number of apprenticeships offered at their company over the next 2 years. Apprenticeships are a great path for people throughout their career, from those just starting out to those re-entering the labour market, from those upskilling for the present to those reskilling for the future. Read more here.

The retail industry is going through a period of unprecedented and rapid change driven by changes in technology, new channels to market and increased customer expectations.  In order to help businesses succeed, management and leaders in the retail industry need to be skilled to meet these unique challenges.

With high quality apprenticeships for the retail industry now available, there has never been a better or more exciting time to consider apprenticeships.

Working together with our hand-picked provider partners, BRC Learning offers high quality leadership and management apprenticeships tailored specifically for the retail industry.  Click here for more information