Operational Advice

Are you considering taking on a student in your salon? Employment engagement leader Hilary Orr tells Eleanor Vousden how to make work experience benefit your salon and inspire the next generation of therapists

1. Set expectations

Salon owners and students get the most out of their placement when duties and expectations are clearly set. “The work placement that works best is the one that has communication,” explains Hilary Orr, employment engagement leader at The Manchester College.

“What does the employer want from this placement? How many learners do you want? You can be quite particular in what kind of student you want. In the current climate, additional support within your business may be just what you need, especially with the extra cleaning and Covid-19 procedures that students could support. They could help with the front of house, phone calls and booking in clients.”

Setting clear expectations, such as salon uniform requirements and day-to-day responsibilities, will help both you and the learner get the most out of the placement. “If they’re coming in and they look a little unsure because they’ve not got that confidence or communication skills, then some students might go back within themselves and look like they’re not using their initiative, but sometimes that’s because they’re unsure,” explains Orr.

2. Consider placement duration

Orr explains that work placements can be flexible to suit the employer. “It can include placements where a business hosts a student from two days right up to 45 days. So, there’s actually quite a big difference for an employer,” she says.

“For the students who work the shorter placements, such as two-to-five days, I would say it’s more shadowing and getting an overview of what it’s like to work in a salon, so they could help meet the clients and do a lot of observing from a distance,” she says.

However, for the longer learner placements, more responsibility can be given as the student learns. “45 days is a good length of time for an employer to see if a student fits within that business. These placements are different because students are hoping to gain those tactical and practical skills, and the employer gets to know a lot more about a student,” says Orr.

“A placement can often be a great lead into a part-time job and that quite often happens in the beauty industry- our students are potentially your next generation of employees.”

3. Check your insurance

If you’re in a position to take on a student, make sure you have the correct insurance in place as this is a common barrier for salon owners. “You may have public liability but you might need employer’s liability insurance, too,” says Orr.

“If you’ve got employees, then insurance companies tend to agree that that students on work experience should be treated as employees for the purposes of instances and insurance. Most employers’ liability policies will have a pedestrian definition of employee that covers students on work experience.” Speak with your insurance provider if you are unsure.

4. Consider mentoring

If you currently can’t take on a student in your business, there are other ways you can offer your support. “Employers could come into colleges and do talks, or they could do webinars for us with Q&As,” says Orr. “Employers can help students with their CVs or mock interviews and that might sound quite trivial, but for young learners (16-to-18-year-olds) they have no experience of what it’s like to engage in any form of interview,” she says.

“Could you consider assigning a staff member to be a mentor to support a student virtually, over Zoom or Skype, and then at a later stage, meet with the student and let them come into the salon? We’re trying to think of lots of different ways of working at the moment,” adds Orr.

5. Inspire the next generation

Students have faced career uncertainty during Covid-19, so offering placements can help them get their foot in the door of employment. “The experience the student can gain is invaluable,” says Orr. “It works for young people who get the opportunity to participate in the world of work and gain practical experience, which will enable them to prove they are valuable and productive members of the workforce.

“And it works for employers for whom work experience is vital in providing a talent pipeline. Plus, it works for the wider economy and society, bringing more people into work and out of long-term unemployment.”

Orr recommends reaching out to your local colleges or sixth forms to initiate a placement. “Most colleges will have somebody who will be able to deal with your enquiry. It’s good to meet with the college rep to discuss the types of work experience that you might want to offer and the expectations of a student on work experience,” she says. PB

Hilary Orr is the employment engagement leader from The Manchester College and works with employers and students to help secure work placements.