M&S Launches Traineeship to Help Tackle NEET Crisis

M&S has announced the launch of its ‘Not Just Any Career’ initiative, designed to create 1,000 training places for young people across the UK and Ireland. 

The traineeship has been created with people at the start of their careers in mind, and will focus on leadership skills and hands-on experience while helping to create pathways into long-term retail careers. Specifically aimed at 18-24 year olds, the initiative is hoping to tackle the high numbers of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET).

Participants will be provided with six months of training, and be supported by M&S leaders and store colleagues. The scheme will be targeting retail management skills, confidence building and hands-on experience in store. 

Successful participants will be offered the opportunity to move on to further training to become a store manager within the company. 

“A Saturday job can change a young person’s life. I know, because it transformed mine,” Stuart Machin, CEO of M&S, said in a blog post. “But when I think about the challenges facing young people today, I worry that many won’t have the same opportunity. 

“That doesn’t need to be the case – we can do so much more to provide the opportunities, experiences and skills to unlock their confidence and get them into good jobs.”

Youth unemployment rises

M&S says that this new initiative is responding to the growing youth unemployment challenge by giving young people practical experience, support and direct routes into management. 

According to Alan Milburn’s Young People and Work Review, released in late May, nearly one million young people in the UK are NEET, or roughly one in eight – with that number forecast to rise to one in six by 2030. 

The report found that six out of 10 young people who are NEET today have never had a job, up from four out of 10 in 2005. 

“We are at risk of a lost generation,” the report said, suggesting that young people are “becoming detached from education and employment altogether”. Young people, it says, are missing out on learning the habits of work and taking their first steps towards independence. 

However, M&S suggests that retail may provide a key opportunity for many of these people. 

“Retail is one of the few careers where you can start young, learn fast, lead teams early and build an incredible future through hard work and ambition,” says Thinus Keeve, Retail Director at M&S. “As Stuart has argued, retail is the engine of the everyday economy and there is no better place to start than on the shopfloor.

“At M&S, we want more young people to see retail not just as a first job, but as a career with real opportunity, real responsibility and real progression. You do not need a degree to succeed here; you need attitude, energy, resilience and the willingness to learn. 

“This programme is about opening doors for the next generation and giving talented young people the chance to thrive.”

Kings Trust partnership

This initiative sits alongside Marks and Start, M&S’s long-standing partnership with the King’s trust, which has supported more than 14,000 people into work over the course of 20 years. 

Alongside the launch of this initiative, the King’s Trust, Sir Gareth Southgate and M&S announced a new campaign designed to provide opportunities for young people. This partnership will develop a new AI-powered digital platform offering practical resources, mentoring, skills and real-world opportunities. 

Launching in 2017, the platform has been created to help young people facing adversity and isolation to build confidence and move into stable employment. 

“Retail is an engine of the everyday economy, creating good jobs with clear opportunities to progress, develop skills and build confidence,” says Stuart.  Like many colleagues at Marks & Spencer, my career started with a Saturday job in retail, so we know just how important that first rung on the ladder is. We also know that having the right support, mentors and role models can make all the difference. 

“Through our long-standing partnership with The King’s Trust, M&S has helped 14,000 people into work. This new initiative will allow us to help even more young people take that crucial first step, benefitting not only them, but businesses and the UK as a whole.”