10.09.09

B&Q LAUNCHES SHOWROOM ACADEMY

As UK’s top retailers come together today at a Skillsmart Retail skills summit, B&Q announces the launch of its Showroom Academy, a training school designed to give its showroom employees even better product, service and design skills across kitchens, bathrooms, furniture, carpets, flooring and show room appliances. As more and more customers choose to improve their homes rather than move, B&Q is growing its showroom business and in May of this year announced an £18m showroom expansion plan.

The Showroom Academy launches from 28 September and will see up to 4,000 employees, aged 16 to 82 across the chain’s 330 stores in UK and ROI complete a City & Guilds approved, nationally recognised Home Improvement Knowledge Qualification by the end of the year. The Academy represents an investment of around £2 million.

Training programmes have existed previously for its showroom employees but this is the first time all the product, design and service skills training have been pulled together in this way through the launch of a single Academy. The Academy has been put together by B&Q’s award winning HR team with external input from its expert showroom supplier base.

Training will take place in store and in 13 regional skills centres across the country.

Earlier this year the retailer announced an investment of £1 million in improving the skills of its store teams through three skills qualifications pathways with the retail apprenticeship programme being one of these. Hundreds of employees have graduated with a City & Guilds accredited qualification and customers will soon be able to recognise these employees in store as they will be wearing a badge saying they've got one of the City & Guilds qualifications.

This year the retailer has also celebrated the launch of its apprenticeship programme. With employees aged from 18 to 70 the scheme is believed to be the most diverse apprenticeship scheme in the industry.

The Apprenticeship is a 12 month programme of learning and qualifications that they will complete while doing their job giving them the skills, knowledge and confidence to progress their career in their chosen field.

Liz Bell, HR Director says;” Investing in skills for our store teams to give our customers the confidence that they are being advised by expert staff who are knowledgeable and able to offer trusted service is a priority. The launch of the Showroom Academy is the latest addition to a suite of qualifications and apprenticeship programmes that we have introduced this year."

There are three skills pathways for B&Q's City & Guilds qualification offer this year:

* NVQ (National Vocational Qualification) Retail Skills Level 2 - a nationally recognized qualification, City & Guilds approved and audited externally;

* Home Improvement Knowledge Qualification (HIKQ) - product knowledge and project selling in decorating, gardening, building and room solutions

* A Retail Apprenticeship Programme

The qualifications are open to all non-management colleagues of all ages. B&Q employs 33,500 employees and 28 per cent are over 50 and around 8 per cent are over 65. Most company apprenticeship schemes are only open to ages 18-25 which also makes B&Q's scheme unique as there are no age limitations - even B&Q's oldest worker, Sid Prior, aged 94 who works at the chain's flagship New Malden eco-store could be eligible to apply for an apprenticeship. The investment in skills offers real opportunities across all ages of employees to get an externally recognised qualification.

In April of this year, B&Q picked up the Global Gallup Great Workplace Award. It is the third consecutive year it has won the award and is the only UK business awarded. The Gallop Great Workplace Award is based on the most rigorous workplace research ever conducted and honours organizations whose employee engagement results demonstrate they have the most productive and engaged workforces in the World.

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