- 13 July 2026
Recent research has identified that Kleek Apprenticeships now trains 1 in 5 of hair, beauty and barbering apprentices in the UK.
That’s an impressive number and highlights the dedication and commitment of the company’s educators and its reputation for high-quality training of hair and beauty professionals.
The NHBF highlighted in 2025, that the number of hair and beauty apprentices was now “under 5000.” Kleek Apprenticeships has seen some 1000 learners on its books over the current 2025/2026 period.
Kleek Apprenticeships has been delivering hair and beauty apprenticeships since 2000 (firstly as Saks Education and since late 2022, as Kleek Apprenticeships). Kleek is proud to be spearheading the training of the next generation of hairstylists, barbers and beauty therapists, but also echoes the industry in its concern of the significant drop in apprentice starts since 2014.
We hope that the new government apprentice incentives and support to get young people into work will have a positive effect on the number of salon apprenticeship vacancies and the take-up of apprentices across the country.
In the last 12 months, Kleek has received some 3,895 applications or registrations, so it is clear that hairdressing, barbering and beauty therapy remain popular choices for young creative people. As the industry contributes £9 billion to the UK economy each year and employs more than 250,000 people, the majority of whom are women and young people*, we hope that further support and respect for the industry will be forthcoming to enable the best route and employer-favoured** apprenticeship route to remain open to our young people choosing their career paths.
*NHBF at Business & Trade Select Committee July 2025 / NHBF SoI report 2025 / NHBF Respect Our Sector
**Apprenticeships favoured by 95% of employers in the Industry (British Hair Consortium 2025)
