M&S stores in the county are now accepting applications for young people keen to gain retail experience through the Kickstart work placement programme.

Open to people aged between 16-24, there will be a number of roles available at the Canterbury and Maidstone Eclipse Park stores, starting from July.

The Kickstart programme was introduced by the government last year to help those impacted by the Covid crisis.

Under the scheme, employers will be able to offer young people on Universal Credit state-subsidised work placements for six months.

M&S took on 171 placements earlier this year - from 1,000 applicants.

It's second round of hires will see 189 jobs up for grabs across 72 of its stores nationwide. Six will be available in the two Kent stores.

Cara Spearpoint, store manager at M&S Canterbury, said: “We are delighted to be involved in the Kickstart programme to support young people gain valuable experience to further build employability and life skills longer term. Whilst the last twelve-months have been particularly challenging for young people in particular, we look forward to welcoming our first cohort to our team in July and supporting them on their career journey.”

Those hired through the scheme will join as trainee customer assistants, rotating during their six months across a variety of departments.

Applications for the July cohort are now open at Jobcentre Plus locations.

The jobs come a week after the retailer admitted a number of stores were likely to close over the coming months.

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