One of Hertfordshire’s longest established and most prestigious hairdressing salons, Hair by Phillip located at Stotfold, has a reputation for the pursuit of excellence. The company has been trading for some 37 years, and its owner- manager Phillip Parkin’s skills are recognised internationally. Phillip has a reputation for helping young people to gain experience and fulfil their potential in the hairdressing industry, and his latest apprentice Sinead Ryan is proving an outstanding beneficiary of this approach.
Sinead, 19, from Letchworth, began her one-year Hairdressing NVQ Level 3 advanced apprenticeship course in March 2009. This course is a partnership between North Hertfordshire College and Hair by Phillip with a programme that focuses on hands-on work in the salon developing a comprehensive range of advanced work-based skills, plus an essential element of class work and theoretical knowledge one day each week, to support and reinforce practical ability. The course is, in this case, fully funded by NHC, apart from the employer contribution of her wages.
Her employer and mentor at work Phillip Parkin, has a long-standing association with North Hertfordshire College and has taught many NHC students, including those requiring short-term on-job training and work experience according to their varying stages of development: three of which have gone on to achieve “student of the year” awards. He comments:
“Sinead is not my first apprentice, and she will certainly not be my last. I am an absolute supporter of apprenticeships, which give young people an opportunity to learn on the job while being paid a wage and properly motivated.
“Sinead, however, is an outstanding example of how an apprenticeship can set the foundations of training and knowledge that are essential in our profession, so that people with potential can fully realise their abilities.” Phillip, who has represented Britain five times in World Championships, added, “Sinead has the ability to go all the way to the top, she is both conscientious and willing to learn; she has a great future.”
When Sinead completes her advance apprenticeship she hopes to stay with Hair by Phillip in the medium term, but her long-term ambition is to own her own salon when the time is right. She reports that the advance apprenticeship programme she is currently following is exactly right for her; providing the opportunity of working with real clients and colleagues, plus a weekly spell at college to develop knowledge and theory, and the satisfaction of being worthy of earning a wage.
Another major plus for Sinead is that she has been able to successfully participate in prestigious hairdressing competitions as part of her development programme, and in the company of her NHC tutor Karen Thomas, last year she won the 2009 World Skills Challenge for apprentices.
Both Sinead, and her mentor Phillip, are now convinced that she has a flourishing future in the challenging and creative career she has chosen.