The retail industry needs to change young people’s career perceptions, said Charlie Mayfield, chairman of John Lewis Partnership at Skillsmart Retail’s first-ever parliamentary event.

Retail employers and members of parliament congregated at the House of Commons for the ‘Retail Skills - the Future Challenge’ at the end of June. The purpose of the event was to strengthen links between Skillsmart Retail, government and retailers, and ensure the continual success of the retail sector by looking at ways to improve skills.

Mayfield, who was a keynote speaker at the event, spoke about the crucial importance of retail training and the need to encourage particularly young people, who are not aware of the exciting and structured career path retail can offer them, into the industry.

A host of ceos from major retailers and MPs, including David Lepper MP for Brighton Pavilion and Peter Bottomley MP for Worthing West, attended the event, which was sponsored by Investors in People.

Skillsmart Retail designed an informative event programme in order to highlight to retailers the importance of investing in skills development, and how Skillsmart Retail can play an active role supporting retailers in using their existing training programmes to raise skills levels in retail.

A new ten-minute film was launched at the event to increase awareness amongst employers of retail skills issues and the implications of the Leitch Review, a report published in December 2006, which focuses on raising the skills levels of employees across all sectors. Lord Leitch, in his report, recommended that access to training should become a statutory right for employees if employers fail to make sufficient investment in raising skills levels by 2010. The short film featured interviews with school-leavers, careers advisors as well as comment from large retailers.

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