M&S has announced a new initiative that will create 1,000 training places for young people (aimed at 18–24-year-olds) across the UK and Ireland.
The aim is to open opportunities for people at the start of their careers, focusing on leadership skills, hands-on experience and clear pathways into a retail career for life. Applicants will not need a degree to take part.
The programme responds to the growing youth unemployment challenge by giving young people practical experience, support and a direct route into management. In a blog post commissioned by Alan Milburn, the CEO of M&S Stuart Machin recently reflected on his career in retail which started with pushing trolleys at 16:
“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. 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.”
Last week, the interim report of Alan Milburn’s Young People and Work Review found that nearly one million young people in the UK are not in education, employment or training (NEET), roughly one in eight – and forecast to rise to one in six by 2030.
Participants will receive six months of training, supported by M&S leaders and store colleagues, with the scheme focused on practical retail management skills, confidence-building and hands-on experience in store. Places will be available across the UK and Ireland, with successful participants able to move on to further training to become a Store Manager within M&S.
The scheme ‘Not Just Any Career’ sits alongside M&S’s long-standing partnership with The King’s Trust Marks & Start, which has supported more than 14,000 people into work over 20 years. This week His Majesty the King, Sir Gareth Southgate and M&S CEO Stuart Machin also announced a new campaign to provide opportunities for young people. The partnership with the King’s Trust will develop a new AI-powered digital platform offering practical resources, mentoring, skills and real-world opportunities, launching in early 2027 to help young people facing adversity and isolation to build confidence, get ready for work and move into stable employment.
Thinus Keeve, Retail Director, 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.”
Applications open on 27 July with placements made throughout the year on a rolling basis, with 1,000 available over the next 18 months.
