Emma Healey

Emma Healey is making excellent progress at Hamleys, Heathrow Airport. By her own admission, Emma could have tried harder at school, but she has shown great presence of mind in re-sitting her GCSEs at college, as well as enrolling on a NACRO course that included Maths and English Keyskills. Now she’s taken learning a step further to ensure that she can make the most of opportunities at work and turn a job into a career. She’s undertaking a Retail Apprenticeship, and is making excellent headway.

About Apprenticeships


Apprenticeships are nationally designed training programmes. They offer employees the opportunity to enhance their skills through a combination of work-based learning and training.

There are two levels of Apprenticeship available:

  • Apprenticeship (Level 2)
  • Advance Apprenticeship (Level 3)

Both programmes lead to a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ), a Key Skills Qualification and in certain areas, a Technical Certificate Award.

Market Sectors

Covered Working in partnership with Learning and Skills Councils (LSC), BAA Retail Academy together with VT Training provide Government funded Apprenticeships in the following sectors:

  • Retail
  • Customer Service

Emma is a Sales Assistant at Hamleys and is responsible for the ‘girlie’ section of the store. Duties include making sure that the section is always fully stocked with every item correctly priced and the whole area kept spotlessly clean.

Her career in retail began through the NEET (Not in Education or Training) programme. On a four day TIE (Training into Employment) course, Emma learned about Retail opportunities, together with how to write a CV and conduct an interview. During the course she met Karima Sakhi of the BAA Retail Academy, who offered her two weeks work experience at London Heathrow. As a result of this she secured an interview with Hamleys and was delighted to be chosen for a job with the company.

According to Emma’s vocational coach at VT Training, Elaine Anderson, she’s now well on the way to a highly successful career.

“Emma has become a fantastic member of the Hamleys team. She is always positive and willing to learn and she ALWAYS has an infectious smile and personality. Emma has learnt to be responsible with her own section of the store. She has an amazing ability to calm down stressful situations, particularly with her other colleagues. She is always honest with them and they seem to listen to her and understand what she is saying. She is able to bring and hold the team together. Emma has a fantastic attitude and can only continue to do well and succeed.”