M&S makes major June announcement for UK stores – £13.41 rule will apply | UK | News

Marks and Spencer is creating 1,000 “graduate-style” training places for young people across the UK and Ireland, with applications opening next month. M&S, which has around 1,000 stores in the UK, announced the launch of Not Just Any Career on Monday (June 8), a new initiative that the supermarket chain says is “designed to open opportunities for people at the start of their careers” and will “focus on leadership skills, hands-on experience, and clear pathways into a retail career for life”.

Those applying don’t need a degree; the scheme is open to both existing M&S employees and external candidates from school leavers upwards, and is aimed at 18–24-year-olds. M&S says it will help young people onto the “first rung of the leadership ladder, with the opportunity to progress and build a long-term career as a Store Manager”. It comes soon after the interim report of Labour grandee Alan Milburn‘s Young People and Work Review was published, laying out the scale and complexity of the challenges presented by the youth unemployment crisis, with hundreds of thousands of Britons unable to take the next step after leaving school.

It pointed to official statistics showing that nearly one million young people aged 16 to 24 in the UK are NEET (not in education, employment or training) and that the number is rising.

In a blog post commissioned by Mr Milburn, the chief executive of M&S, Stuart Machin, recently reflected on how he started out in retail, pushing trolleys before becoming a powerful figure in the sector, emphasising the importance of routes into work.

“A Saturday job can change a young person’s life. I know, because it transformed mine. But when I think about the challenges facing young people today, I worry that many won’t have the same opportunity,” he wrote.

“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.”

Successful applicants will receive six months of training, supported by M&S leaders and shop floor employees, with training focused on practical retail management skills, confidence-building, and hands-on experience in store, the chain says.

M&S says successful participants will be able to move on to further training to become a Store Manager within the company.

Applications will open on July 27, with placements made throughout the year on a rolling basis, the high street giant says.

M&S has confirmed people on the scheme will be paid the standard store worker pay rate of £13.41 nationally and £14.74 in London.

1,000 places will be available over the next 18 months. M&S says further details, including how to apply, eligibility rules, and where places are available, will be announced in due course.

Thinus Keeve, retail director at M&S, said: “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.

“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.”