Hair & beauty special
Tammy Mellor : Staying ahead
Tammy Melloe has already taken an impressive number of qualifications at TPL Hairdressing but is keen to learn more, seeing them as crucial stepping stones in her ambition to eventually run her own salon.
Leonardo Rizzo
At 25 Leonardo Rizzo is already a master in his field, constantly trying to push the boundaries of hair and fashion innovation through inspirational and educational seminars.
Instant learning: Hair and beauty gets connected
More and more centres are making the most of City & Guilds' revolutionary online resources.
Case study: Bedford College
Those in the know at Bedford College tell us why they chose City & Guilds support.
When Tammy Mellor was at school and considering what career she was going to choose, her first thought was to be an accountant. Her mother had been one and Tammy had done well academically at school. Tammy’s interests, however, lay elsewhere. ‘Sitting behind a desk drove me mad and I’d always been artistic so hairdressing seemed the natural option, but my school didn’t offer hairdressing,’ she says. Undeterred, Tammy completed her A Levels and began working for TPL Hairdressing, a top chain of salons in the North West of England, as an apprentice in July 2002. Since then, she has not stopped building on her skills. ‘I’m one of those people who’s willing to learn everything. I want to better myself.’
Tammy worked hard to complete her Foundation Modern Apprenticeship at TPL and decided to take qualifications and education further, choosing to do an NVQ Level 3 and Diploma in Hairdressing to give her an Advanced Apprenticeship. ‘I felt this would benefit me as I was interested in doing more work with younger candidates, either assessing or teaching later on in life,’ she says, clearly committed to going beyond the basic professional requirements for hairdressing. ‘I am very interested in the creative side of my trade so I joined the company’s artistic team which involves presentational and photographic work and competitions, this in turn helped with my NVQ Level 3 and Diploma because I had experience in this area.’
TPL’s art team members have appeared on stage at prestigious events such as Salon International and regularly visit London exhibitions to ensure the salon’s styles remain in the forefront of fashion and wearability. Tammy admits to putting 110% into practical and theory work in order to give her a better understanding of hairdressing. ‘In all of my assignments I put as much information in as I possibly can. This means researching on the internet and in text books, and I feel this has helped me as I now have a lot of fundamental knowledge about hairdressing.’
Tammy’s dedication to her profession would not have been possible without the support of TPL. The chain of salons are run by Tim Lawton who started up TPL 15 years ago in Nantwich, before opening further outlets in Allsager and then Crewe. The salon now employs 60 people with 25 on apprenticeships. ‘It’s my 30th year in hairdressing,’ says Tim. ‘When I opened TPL my main objective was to bring primary hairdressing – the kind you get in cities – into more rural locations with a big emphasis on training. Having not been allowed to do a City & Guilds course myself when I was working in a salon, I realised the benefits of training and knew that TPL’s success relied upon it.’
At TPL every trainee is committed to one day of training. Initially coming in for an induction, the trainee’s individual needs are identified in order to create tailored programmes. As part of the commitment to training, TPL has its own award-winning and fully accredited training school, based in the Nantwich salon, that delivers Apprenticeship and Advanced Apprenticeship courses to all its own apprentices as well as to those of other local salons that lack the facility.
Training, however, is not confined to junior team members, with advanced courses regularly organised for qualified stylists to enhance their technical skills in cutting, colouring, and barbering. ‘We have full > training facilities here, including videos and screens, and our art team runs monthly workshops for advanced skills in things like styling for photographic shoots. Having the centre and our own teachers gives us quality control, enabling us to train our staff to own specific standards,’ says Tim.
A shining example of the exacting standards now demanded in modern hairdressing, TPL’s training is externally verified by Total People, one of the North West’s largest providers of work-based training. A dedicated hairdressing team at Total People provides support to employers who are encouraging their staff to up-skill, and the team is currently working in partnership with more than 150 businesses (see ‘Total Flexibility’ opposite). ‘They quality check our teaching and take care of the paperwork so that we can focus on the quality,’ says Tim, who believes that there is a better academic level coming through his salon’s doors these days.
‘Because hairdressing is more recognised as a profession, people are more focused. Tammy is a prime example of that. She understood her end goals, passed with distinctions in an exceptionally short period of time and took full advantage of the extra-curricular activities,’ he says, more than aware that TPL runs the danger of training and then losing highly qualified and motivated hairdressers. ‘We provide a proper career structure where employees can see growth – from a trainee and stylist through to a trainer and manager. We have to provide the culture as well if we want to keep people.’
Now 22, Tammy is already a senior stylist at TPL, a major achievement for someone her age, and she hopes to one day run her own salon. Tammy is currently taking management qualifications and speculates that her education may one day come full circle if she has to study accountancy. ‘I like helping others to learn so I’m doing an A1 Assessors Award which means I’ll need to know a lot more. I’ve enjoyed studying everything because I know that it will make my life a bit easier.’
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Leonardo Rizzo is the eldest son of the founder and director of Sanrizz, Tony Rizzo. It was inevitable that he would follow in his father’s footsteps having grown up within a creative, hairdressing environment, surrounded by hairdressing uncles, father and the extended Sanrizz family. Training from a young age, Leonardo exhibited exceptional talent and skill for the hairdressing craft.
At 25, Leonardo is already a master in his field. He won the coveted Southern Hairdresser of the Year category at the 2005 British Hairdressing Awards and this year he took home the L’Oreal Colour Trophy for the South (for a second year in a row). Leonardo juggles his salon, photographic and seminar work with heading up the Sanrizz Young Artistic Team, and is constantly trying to push the boundaries of hair and fashion innovation through inspirational and educational seminars.
‘I’ve been in a salon for as long as I can remember – folding towels and sweeping the floors during school holidays. I actually started training with my uncles and father when I was about 14. Then, at university I took Business Management because I have always wanted to run my own salon,’ says Leonardo. ‘My course took me to Barcelona for a year where I had the privilege of working and training with Louis Llongeuras, one of Dali’s contemporaries and Spain’s biggest hairdresser. When I got back, I started working in, and then later managing, our Sanrizz salon in Guildford.’
Leonardo designates time each day to staff training. ‘I think it’s probably the single greatest investment in the future success of your business. Two members of my team are currently doing their City & Guilds and two have just finished. I’m really proud of my team. Half of them didn’t start out in hair, they were assistants or receptionists. I can’t believe how they’ve grown and gelled to be a professional, productive and unified group of people.’
Leonardo keeps his own training up-to-date as well, recently completing the ILM Level 3 course in Line Management and Investors in People course. He believes that they have both been invaluable. ‘When I started, we never used to take on board the NVQ, it was only six years ago that we went into it in a big way. It gives a lot more structure because people automatically have a base level – in a way it’s made my life easier,’ says Leonardo, adding that attitude is also crucial in hairdressing. ‘To start with people have pre-conceived ideas about what hairdressing is and how they are going to progress – it doesn’t just happen. You have to be 100% dedicated to what you do. You have to show you are hungry for opportunities. The more you are a part of it, the more opportunities come your way.’
With hairdressers always coming out on top of City & Guilds’ Happiness index in terms of the most satisfying job, Leonardo believes that there is nothing more gratifying than seeing a customer walk in with an expectation and then turning it on its head. ‘It’s fulfilling to know that you have changed the way someone feels about themselves with your own hands,’ he says, reflecting on why hairdressers remain so satisfied with their vocation. ‘It’s the constant interaction with clients as well and I would be happy if I continued on this route. I’m still learning and absorbing so much from my team and peers. I want the company to build a first class reputation for our training and our education. Eventually, I want us to be recognised as the best. We have a long way to the top but we are enjoying the challenges along the way.’
‘Staff training is the single greatest investment’
Leonardo Rizzo
Sanrizz
Over the last few months more and more centres have been attracted to using online resources in their learning and teaching. In response, City & Guilds has increased its offerings in support resources for hair and beauty qualifications. Aside from new material added to the dedicated online support portal, SmartScreen.co.uk, it has launched a radically restyled Hairdressing NVQ/SVQ Level 2 Candidate Logbook, seen its Essential Knowledge and Understanding (EKU) tests on GOLA storm to success and most recently celebrated its acquisition of Learnxtra.com, the visual online learning support resource for students of hairdressing and beauty NVQs.
Danny Fitzgerald, Senior Manager (Hair and Beauty) at City & Guilds comments: ‘I am delighted and excited to be working in a sector that is embracing new technology and taking an innovative approach to developing ideas and creativity. I look forward to researching, developing and evolving more materials to support the increasing demand.’
Bedford College
Those in the know at Bedford College tell us why they chose City & Guilds support…
Melissa Peacock, Advanced Practitioner, first started using City & Guilds support materials to aid delivery of lessons just over a year ago. ‘The online support portal SmartScreen, coupled with Learnxtra, fills our pool of teaching resources with effective, time-saving teaching materials. The schemes of work, handouts and worksheets available are informative, usable and reinforce the learning of students,’ she says.
The interactive activities give tutors the ability to offer the students something that little bit different in lessons. ‘The tutors love the fact that students can have fun while learning and that the lesson plans are flexible, meaning they can be amended if necessary to fit into how we deliver lessons at the centre.’
The well informed materials from SmartScreen, combined with Learnxtra’s ability to use graphic animation to help students understand the scientific processes involved in hairdressing techniques, makes for an outstanding resource. They also engage students and motivate them to study outside of the classroom, helping bridge the boundaries between formal and informal learning.
The college soon added the Essential Knowledge and Understanding (EKU) tests, delivered on City & Guilds’ GOLA system, to their support resources. With a cohort of beauty therapy students taking paper-based EKU tests, marking was always a challenge for the department’s tutors. ‘Last year, with GOLA testing suite and its own invigilators for GOLA exams already in place Bedford College decided to move the level 2 and 3 students over to the new online EKU tests,’ says Michelle Moffat, Lecturer and Course Manager for Beauty Therapy.
‘The students were all very keen to use online tests and couldn’t wait to get started. The tests are very easy to use and the students loved the instant result.’ For the tutors, it is the instant marking that makes all the difference. Previously the department would have several hundreds of papers to mark across the cohort just for one attempt. ‘Throughout the months of April, May and June we were marking at home in our own time. So this was fantastic,’ says Michelle.
Bedford College chose City & Guilds because of its high standards as well as rigorous and supportive external verifiers. ‘The quality is reflected in the success of our learners. Last year 100% of our level 3 beauty learners got jobs in the industry, the majority with premier employers,’ says Melissa. ‘The main bulk of learners had jobs arranged even before they completed their qualification. The industry clearly recognises and respects City & Guilds’ high standard when it comes to vocational learning and support.’
‘The tutors love it that students can have fun while learning’
Melissa Peacock
Bedford College
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