Linda Florance, Chief Executive of Skillfast-UK the Sector Skills Council for those areas, is calling for UK businesses with a strong understanding of the retail market, to join a working group to develop the content of the Specialised Diploma in Retail, which will be a combined vocational and academic route into the industry, for 14-19 year olds.

"This is a brand new qualification, which aims to give young people a broad understanding of retail principles, with some highly relevant work experience," said Mrs Florance. "We need leading employers from apparel, footwear or textiles, to help us shape the diploma so that it truly reflects the employment needs of the retail sector. We want to interview business owners about their skills priorities for young people and would like one or two key employers to join us on the working group which will create and guide the development of the qualification."

Development of the Diploma in Retail will be led by Skillsmart Retail, the Sector Skills Council for retail, with Skillfast-UK providing specific expertise from the apparel, fashion and textile manufacturing sectors who supply the retail trade.

Companies who want to find out more about the new qualification can visit the Skillfast-UK website at www.skillfast-uk.org/employers and click on the link for the retail diploma, which details how they can take part in its development.

Sector Skills Councils were established by the Government and have been tasked with representing employers in the skills and training arena, helping them to increase productivity. Their aim is to facilitate relationships between employers, training providers and funding agencies so that they can develop an appropriate, fit-for-purpose training infrastructure with qualifications tailored to suit employers’ needs.

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