The Foundation Skills competitions have been created to showcase the skills of students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), additional learning needs (ALN), or who require additional support for learning (ASL). Participants will be tested against core competencies aligned to Entry level 3 or level 1.
These competitions provide excellent opportunities for students and learners to develop their vocational skills, employability and wider skills for work, personal, social and independence skills.
The competition is an opportunity for young people who may be aspiring to work in the Hairdressing industry to showcase their talent and demonstrate their journey towards work-readiness. Some examples of the job roles available might be:
Important Information: Skill Specific Rules
Customer service skills
Health and Safety
Creativity
Attention to detail
Organisation
Prioritising
Our library of endorsed local skills competition briefs ‘benchmarking assessments’ helps prepare learners to build technical skills, productivity, and mindset competencies for national competition success, including employability progression pathways.
Paired with the benchmarking tracker, educators can record progress, identifying strengths and target areas for improvement. Together, they offer a reliable, standards-led framework, creating a sustainable model for skills development that supports educators to empower learners to be competition ready.
This competition is for neurodiverse students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), additional learning needs (ALN), or who require additional support for learning (ASL). Applicants should be currently undertaking a course within a curriculum area specific to SEN needs at an FE or training provider from Entry level 3 up to a maximum of Level 1.
Registrations open on Monday 2 March 2026, 9am and will close Friday 27 March 2026, midnight.
Entry Stage will be released Monday 20 April with a final deadline of Wednesday 29 April 2026.
Qualifiers will take place Tuesday 23 June and Wednesday 24 June 2026 at North Warwickshire & South Leicestershire College – Nuneaton Campus.
To help finalists prepare ahead of the UK Final, we will provide relevant technical training and share mindset development techniques, to support them to remain focused on achieving success.
Prepare students and apprentices by engaging with our benchmarking resources to master their skills and mindset masterclasses to build confidence and resilience on the WorldSkills UK Learning Lab.
The National Finals are scheduled to take place in Wales during the week commencing 16 November 2026.
If you’re interested in Hairdressing then visit our Careers pages to learn more.
