With more and more retailers valuing the experience and skills of older employees – including B&Q whose staff have been praised by retail guru Mary Portas for how knowledgeable they are – a new career in retail could be the perfect way to get back into work for unemployed people aged over 50.
Retail can provide flexible and part-time positions that fit easily around other commitments as well as the chance to meet new people and work in a friendly, customer-focused environment.
Smart Savings’ accredited Money Skills for Retail courses will offer participants the chance to hear from employers in the local retail industry who have job vacancies available, such as Tesco, and can give participants advice on how to apply. The course will be based at Redruth Community Centre, but will also include visits to several retailers including a National Trust charity shop, to see how the skills they learn are put into practice.
A pilot version of the course held last summer was extremely successful. One of the participants of the pilot course, Liz, said: “I was delighted to have the opportunity to attend the Money Skills for Retail course in Redruth in 2011. Having been in the hospitality business for several years it was an ideal opportunity to update my skills for dealing with the general public, and I was ready to change direction. The course was excellent and I have now had a change of career as a result. I can certainly recommend the course to anyone who is struggling to find new employment and considering a change.”
Participants will also receive expert advice from Nextstep on creating the perfect CV tailored to working in the retail sector, get help with searching for jobs, and will have the opportunity to receive a City and Guilds numeracy qualification at the end of the course.
The courses are being run by Smart Savings, a Redruth-based not-for-profit organisation which provides Money Skills training courses and ethical financial services. Smart Savings has received funding from Jobcentre Plus through Cornwall Works, and the Community Grants programme which is supported by the European Social Fund and Skills Funding Agency, and managed by Cornwall Development Company.
Jane Jiwa, Project Director of Smart Savings said: “Working in retail is an extremely attractive prospect for many over 50’s. In many cases we see people who could be perfect for a retail job, but have maybe worked for one company for all their life and have never needed a CV, or just need to brush up on their numeracy skills – we help them to break down these barriers to getting a job and give them the skills they need to find a new career in retail.
“Because the course is specifically for over 50’s, it’s also a chance to meet other people in the same situation as you– when we ran the pilot programme it was great to see how it created such a friendly environment.”
The first of two Money Skills for Retail courses will start on Thursday 9 February and will run for 21 hours over 7 weeks, with five one-to-one sessions for additional support and mentoring. The course is open to anyone who is unemployed and over 50.
To find out more or to book a place, please contact Smart Savings on 01209 212579 or email info@smartsavings.org.uk.
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