Cheynes

Cheynes Training was created in 1988 by Jennifer Cheyne OBE and William Howarth in order to develop a high-quality hairdressing training system linked to the then new National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) structure. Cheynes Training subsequently became the first national training provider for hairdressing when we launched our NVQ programme in 1989 with the full approval and support of the UK government.

Our aim today remains the same as in 1989. Our ambition is to raise the standard of hairdressing and barbering in the UK and help make everyone in our industry proud of their profession. Many thousands of young people have successfully launched their careers through Cheynes Training and achieved their ambition of becoming a professional hairdresser or barber.

In the mid-1990s the government introduced what was then called the Modern Apprenticeship Programme and since then Cheynes Training has worked with many hundreds of employers across Britain delivering hairdressing and barbering apprenticeship training to their employees. Our goal is to help young people fulfil their career ambitions by teaching them how to become a highly successful hairdresser or barber working in a great salon and to achieve this we know that we need to create and continually develop highly effective education systems that routinely achieves exceptional results.

William Howarth, executive chairman, has overall responsibility for Cheynes Training and leads the head office team in Edinburgh. Melanie Mitchell, who was appointed programme director in January 2020, is responsible for day-to-day operations and heads up our team of specialist training advisors operating throughout England and Scotland.

The training programmes currently operated by Cheynes Training include:

• Diploma for Hair Professionals: our flagship hairdressing and barbering programme in England aimed at new apprentices entering the industry for the first time and which incorporates new employer developed standards at Level 2 along with functional skills and other key components.
• Intermediate Apprenticeships: this programme is gradually being replaced by the new Diploma but remains a very important internationally recognised qualification which also incorporates NVQ Level 2 along with functional skills and other components.
• Advanced Apprenticeships: incorporating NVQ Level 3 and functional skills and which is aimed at hairdressing and barbering learners who have already completed an Intermediate Apprenticeship programme and who wish to improve their skills.
• Modern Apprenticeships: our foundation programme in Scotland which includes Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQ) in hairdressing along with core skills and which is aimed at apprentices entering the industry for the first time.