APPG calls on Government to aid beauty industry’s recovery post-Covid-19 as salons struggle to bounce back

Published 08th Oct 2021 by PB Admin
APPG calls on Government to aid beauty industry’s recovery post-Covid-19 as salons struggle to bounce back

The All Party Parliamentary Group on Beauty, Aesthetics and Wellbeing (APPG) has published a call to action asking the Government to secure the revival of the £30 billion beauty and wellbeing sector post-pandemic, with recommendations of how this could be done. 

The group, chaired by MPs Carolyn Harris and Judith Cummins, launched an inquiry following concerns from industry leaders that the sector was still struggling to bounce back after coronavirus.

It found that many businesses are facing staff shortages post-Brexit and due to inadequate funding for apprentices, as well the deficit in consumer confidence, 66% of beauty businesses remain either partially or fully reliant on Government support to function. 

The sector also plays a crucial role in supporting the public’s mental health and wellbeing, but staff shortages and a lack of Government recognition hinder the sector from fulfilling these needs, states the APPG. 

The group has made three recommendations to Government in the call to action to ensure that the sector is not left behind in the UK’s post-Covid-19 recovery, based on evidence given in public inquiry sessions and written submissions from a wide range of stakeholders – including trade associations, industry operators and education providers.

The APPG’s three recommendations to Government to aid the beauty industry’s recovery post-coronavirus are: 

  1. Broaden apprenticeship incentives for employers, in particular, for small and micro businesses

  2. Include further accessible and broader holistic and complementary qualifications in the National Skills Fund

  3. Recognise the crucial role of holistic and complementary therapies, and the crucial role these can play in taking pressure off the NHS.

Harris and Cummins commented: “While we were grateful the sector was able to reopen in April after our year-long campaign for greater recognition, beauty, aesthetics, and wellbeing continues to be left behind in the Government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We launched this inquiry due to concerns we were hearing from the industry about serious staff shortages, a continued deficit in consumer confidence, and a lack of support for wellbeing services that play an essential role in supporting our overstretched NHS. The sector is still facing a myriad of issues from the Covid-19 pandemic that are continuing to be side-lined.

“We strongly urge the Government to implement the recommendations in our Call to Action and to ensure that this vital sector, as the beating heart of several UK high streets, can once again become an economic powerhouse and continue to support all of our wellbeing”. 

Read the APPG’s full call to action here

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PB Admin

PB Admin

Published 08th Oct 2021

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