Setting a New Standard for Hair and Beauty Education

Driving Change in Hair and Beauty Education

In late 2023, discussions began and plans were set in motion to design, develop, and award a new range of hair and beauty qualifications. The goal was clear: expand NQual’s reach, explore new avenues, and take on fresh challenges. But it wasn’t until Lauren Atkinson joined the team in January 2024 that the true scope of the challenge—and the industry’s own struggles—came into focus. Outdated practices and skills were widening the gap for the next generation of professionals. Apprentices were becoming disadvantaged and salon owners where feeling the strain.

Lauren became the driving force behind researching what was missing in the market when it came to education and she began to start shaping qualifications that reflect today’s salon realities. By September 2024, NQual proudly launched its first batch of hair and beauty qualifications, setting a new standard for modern, relevant education. Here’s how it all came together.

Lauren Atkinson’s journey into hairdressing began later than most. After earning a degree in fine art and art history, she discovered her true passion lay in the creative world of hair and beauty. Completing an apprenticeship, working her way up to managing a salon through both thriving times and the challenges of COVID-19 gave her a deep understanding of the industry’s realities—and exposed a critical gap in education.

Outdated and Under-Regulated Qualifications

The hair and beauty sector in the UK, while vibrant and essential, suffers from a notable lack of stringent regulatory pressure on the content of qualifications, particularly when it comes to keeping pace with rapid industry evolution. Too often, awarding organizations develop qualifications that technically meet the minimal requirements but fail to incorporate current trends, products, technologies, and essential professional practices.

This deficiency means that many apprentices and students graduate with knowledge that is already partially irrelevant or outdated. As witnessed first-hand in salon management by Lauren, the requirement to conduct extensive in-house training became a necessity, not an option, simply to cover the vital skills missing from the standardised curriculum. This gap forces employers to expend time and resources on remediation, which ultimately slows down a new professional’s journey to success. It highlighted a profound need for qualifications that are current, practical, and truly reflective of the modern salon environment.

NQual's Hair and Beauty Qualifications

Modernising Hair and Beauty Education

NQual's commitment to address the regulatory and curricular shortfall by leveraging a mission driven by our core values: Innovation, Accountability, Passion, Collaboration, and Trustworthiness. Our goal is to elevate the hair and beauty industry to its highest potential, starting with a complete overhaul of the educational framework.

Our strategy for raising standards begins with Innovation and Accountability. We do not settle for the minimum standard. NQual builds every qualification on the latest National Occupational Standards (NOS), which ensures that each unit reflects modern practices and professional expectations from the start.

Championing Inclusion, Diversity, and Wellbeing

NQual is striving to make our qualifications profoundly inclusive, diverse, and modern in a way that previous standards have often overlooked. We recognise that the hair and beauty industry serves an incredibly diverse client base, and education must reflect this reality.

Key priorities include:

NQual is striving to make our qualifications profoundly inclusive, diverse, and modern in a way that previous standards have often overlooked. We recognize that the hair and beauty industry serves an incredibly diverse client base, and education must reflect this reality.

Specifically, our qualifications embed critical focuses on:

• Diversity and Texture: Ensuring apprentices are proficient in working with all hair types and textures, not just a narrow spectrum.

• Wellbeing: Addressing the physical and mental pressures faced by stylists and therapists, integrating health, safety, and client care principles that promote longevity in the industry

• Modern Professionalism: Covering ethical practice, client consultation techniques, and essential business skills that prepare the learner for entrepreneurship and management.

With the foundation laid by Lauren Atkinson and a mission rooted in NQual’s core values, the team is driving the hair and beauty sector beyond simple compliance and toward a model of genuine professional preparedness. This vision is fostering a diverse, highly skilled workforce equipped to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of an ever-evolving industry.

Find Out More About Our Hair & Beauty Qualifications