UK-India skilling pact to open overseas job pathways for beauty, wellness workers
Shanghai, September 24
Indian beauty and wellness professionals could get access to internationally transferable qualifications and wider overseas job opportunities under a new skilling partnership between the Beauty & Wellness Sector Skill Council and UK-based VTCT Skills.
The two organisations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to align qualifications, develop centres of excellence in India and create pathways for Indian trainees to gain credentials linked to UK standards.
"We've signed a memorandum of understanding with the Beauty and Wellness Sector Skills Council... to look at skills promotion and developing centres of excellence in India... and also giving opportunities to students and learners in India," Alan Woods OBE, Chief Executive of VTCT Skills, told ANI on the sidelines of WorldSkills Shanghai 2026.
He said the aim was to ensure that learners in India have "international qualifications which are transferable worldwide."
Monica Bahl, Chief Executive Officer of the Beauty & Wellness Sector Skill Council, said the partnership will include mapping Indian curricula and qualifications against UK standards and National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) levels.
"Most importantly, it will open pathways for Indian trainees and Indian students," Bahl told ANI.
She said students trained under B&WSSC qualifications through government and industry-backed skilling programmes could get equivalence at the UK level. The two organisations also plan to issue joint certificates carrying the credentials of VTCT Skills and B&WSSC.
Bahl said the partnership could help Indian talent access international markets while also strengthening the status of vocational careers in beauty and wellness.
Woods said India's beauty and wellness sector is worth about USD 30 billion and offers significant employment opportunities, particularly for women.
He also said jobs in the sector may be relatively less exposed to replacement by machines because services such as hairdressing and beauty therapy depend heavily on direct interaction with clients.
"It's all about the individual working with your client. So it can never be replaced by a machine," Woods said.
Jonathan Ledger, Skills and Professional Bodies Specialist at the UK's Department for Business and Trade, said India is among the UK's top five priorities under its international education strategy, with skills forming an important part of the partnership.
The MoU comes as both countries seek to expand cooperation in vocational education, skills training and workforce mobility.
— ANI
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