It's always good to hear stories that suggest hairdressing is getting recognised as a serious profession. It was with some optimism, therefore, that I read about proposals by the Business Secretary Lord Mandelson which would see business, including hair salons, take a bigger role in higher education.

The move has been welcomed by Habia chief executive, Alan Goldsbro, who said: "As a sector, we are still underrepresented in higher education, and the number of professionals with a degree level qualification is well below 10%. That's no reflection on the abilities of the people in our industries. It's simply an acknowledgement that traditionally it has been difficult for hairdressers and beauty therapists to find the time or opportunity to study for the relevant higher level qualifications that so many businesses in our sector now need. The new framework will make higher education much more accessible to those who have progressed from a vocational background and allow universities to create courses that meet the needs of employers and students alike, while fitting around work shifts."

Continued Alan: "It will also mean we could see some of the biggest names in the hair and beauty industry establishing partnerships with universities to develop new courses, particularly those covering salon management. With the sector frameworks we have developed for universities, the industry is well-placed to take advantage of these changes."

Backing Young Britain

Meanwhile, Charles Worthington is teaming up with the Backing Young Britain campaign and calling on the hairdressing industry to offer employment to young people.

The Backing Young Britain campaign aims to bring businesses and the public and voluntary sectors together to ensure that the valuable skills and experience of the country's young people aren't being wasted. Businesses can support the campaign by offering volunteering opportunities, work experience, internships and apprenticeships.

Said Charles: "Hairdressing is a popular career choice and encouraging young people into the industry through providing opportunities such as apprenticeships is vital for its future health. Standards of professionalism across the industry have improved vastly in recent years, but it's only by continually investing in young people that this trend will continue.

"We're proud to train apprentices at our salons, and I'd urge fellow professionals across the country to consider how their businesses could provide work experience, training and employment opportunities to the next generation of British hairdressers."

The pair presented two sessions, the first focussing on signature cuts, with an afternoon session looking at long-hair looks. 

Staff at Sue Jane Hairdressing in Horley, Surrey raised money through a range of initiatives, including cakes sales, plus a variety of client competition, including 'match the baby photo to the stylist', 'guess the number of sweets in the jar' and 'name the pink banana!'

Yorkshire-based salon group Goodys held a breast cancer awareness day, with clients asked to sponsor staff for wearing pink.

Gary Hedley Hairdressing in Newcastle's Eldon Square, held six fundraising days during the month with themes including the 1980s and Halloween. Pink champagne and cakes have been available all month and raffles have taken place regularly, with Pink ghds as prizes.

Sponsor Schwarzkopf Professional and Rainbow Room International's creative director, Luke Walton, joined forces to support Breast Cancer Care Scotland earlier this month in a glittering night that raised £145,000 for the charity.

The annual fundraising event invites woman who have undergone a breast cancer diagnosis the chance to shine on the catwalk in a night of glamour and inspiration. Attended by more than 1,000 people, this year's event saw 19 models take to the stage to show how to look and feel amazing again in a show of hope as well as fashion.

"Being part of the Breast Cancer Care Fashion Show was a wonderful experience and instilled a real sense of community and hope in all who took part and attended. The models were an inspirational example to everyone and really shone on the catwalk."

Georgia has also impressed the fashion elite and is gracing the cover of style bible Vogue's November 2009 issue to prove it. Not only is she beautiful, Ms Jagger's hair harks back to her mum's heyday with an unashamed, full-on 80s glamour mane.

Snipper Aaron Blondell from John Carne Hairdressing loves her look. "Georgia May has inherited the best of her mother and father's style and she's a typical rock-god child with the texture of her hair and distressed waves, very rock-n-roll," he says.  

Georgia's timing is perfect as her mother's flowing style has come full-circle with the fashion set. Although there is an 80s vibe, her looks have more then a passing resemblance to 60s sex kitten Bridget Bardot, which is never a bad thing.

"She's taken a leaf out of her mother's book with regards to the way she's wearing and colouring her hair and the all-over-to-one-side is a Jerry Hall trade mark look but she's made it her own with a more youthful and messy take," says Aaron.

The stunning colour is also a talking point for style-watchers. "The sun kissed blonde makes her hair look gorgeous and expensive yet laid-back which sums up her style," says Aaron. At only 17 years old, Georgia is definitely one to watch.

Find out who else HJi loves

See more luscious long blondes on the image gallery  

That represents a huge potential market for your salon, so if do not you have the knowledge and experience to work with Asian hair you could be missing an opportunity.

Mark Creed and the team at Philosophy Hairdressing in Oxford have visited India on a number of occasions in the last four years in conjunction with L'Oréal Professionnel.

In that time, Mark has developed an affinity with the hairdressing industry in India and has a clear understanding of how to get the best results with Indian hair types. So we asked him and his colleagues at Philosophy to share their advice for cutting, colouring and styling Indian and Asian hair.

Mark Creed, technical and business director of Philosophy and vice president of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing, shares his tips for colouring Indian hair.

• An extremely in-depth consultation must be conducted to establish lifestyle, haircare regime etc. It is important to spend enough time ascertaining the best hue to suit the client's complexion.



• Due to the significant darker depths of tone, 9% peroxides are the ideal choice. Lower solutions will result in a colour which is virtually impossible to see and will be generally far too subtle.



• When lifting to lighter shades, always be aware of using the appropriate ash tone to counteract the strong red undertone.



• When your target shade is lighter than the natural colour always endeavour to keep peroxide values as low as possible. This will avoid tone deposit 'burn out' and will keep the hair in the best possible condition.



• Finally, if you are working on models overseas it is extremely helpful to have a complete understanding of local professional hair products, as there is very often a unique range of colouring products that have been produced for optimal use on darker shades. Whenever I travel overseas for colour seminars and shows, I always insist on having a sample colour product range sent to me in the UK to familiarise myself with the product.

Luke Anderson, Philosophy education director, shares his advice for cutting and styling Indian hair.

• Traditionally Indian ladies have long hair, so be aware that the hair may be in bad condition at the ends. Using a quality conditioning treatment on the hair for 15 minutes will prepare the hair before cutting it.



• 'There is beauty in length,' is commonly heard among Indian women so it is important to respect this. Recommending styles that will keep the length is paramount to ensure the clients keep coming back.



• Because of the natural density and thickness of Indian hair, graduation and layering is my top tip. I use layering techniques to soften the area around the face, as well as creating movement and freedom throughout the hair.



• To reduce the volume of the hair through the back, it is effective to layer in tiers, with the underneath tier being shorter than the top tier. This will remove the weight underneath but maintain length at the top to hang over and keep the hair flat.



• With naturally curly hair use a small amount of conditioner as a styling product as well as curl enhancing products. As the hair is dry, it will soak up the conditioner and leave the hair with luscious curls anyone would be envious of.

Winning an award can be a platform to take your career onto bigger and better things, while being shortlisted as a finalist proves that you are at the very top of your field.

The finalists of the British Hairdressing Awards 2009 have demonstrate creativity, the ability to push boundaries and great technical skill to be shortlisted. These are their finalists' collections - don't forget to click on an image to visit their whole collection.

Afro Hairdresser of the Year

Abena Richardson

Eve Owusu & Gemma Humes

Junior Green

Kim Johnson

Michelle Thompson

Sandra Webb

Artistic Team of the Year

Atherton Cox

F.A.M.E. Team

HOB Salons

Lisa Shepherd

TONI&GUY

Avant Garde Hairdresser of the Year

Anne Veck

Darren Ambrose

Efi Davies

Indira Shauwecker

Skyler McDonald

Tina Farey

Schwarzkopf Professional British Colour Technician of the Year

Anne Veck

Christel Lundqvist

Chris Williams

Gary Hooker & Michael Young

Mark Leeson

Robbie Robertson

Men's Hairdresser of the Year

Claire Groves

Desmond Murray

Jamie Stevens

Jody Taylor

Karine Jackson

Mark Smith & Paige Squires

Newcomer of the Year

Ben Moth

Costa Phouli

Mark Painter

Matthew Lewis Stopps

Shaun Hall

Siobhan McGuire

Regional Awards

Midlands Hairdresser of the Year

Andrea Beers

Anya Dellicompagni

Charlotte Cole & Melanie Osborn

James White

Joanna Ludlow

Sean & James Tetlow

View Hairdressing Training Courses - November 2009 in a larger map

Mahogany - Advanced Creative Course
Where: London
When:Every week in November (5 days), dates still available to start - 2, 16 and 23 November 
Cost: £1050
Contact: 0207 629 4078
Level: Confident stylists

Schwarzkopf - Photographic collection with Harry Boocock
Where: ASK Academy london
When: 4th November
Cost: £1250
Contact: ASK Academy 020 7724 7931
Level: Senior stylists/salon owners

The Fantastic Hairdresser - The Fantastic Front of House
When: 9 November
Where: London
Cost: £149
Contact: 020 8996 1643
Level: Receptionists and those responsible for front of house

La Biosthetique - Autumn and Winter Trend Collection with Rae Palmer
When: 9 November
Where: Scotland
Cost: £180 + VAT
Contact: 01296 611731
Level: All

Wahl - Diva's and Dudes
When: 10 November
Where: Herne Bay, Kent
Cost: £244.68
Contact: 01227 740555
Level: 3 years experience recommended

L'Oreal Professionnel - Cut & Colour Collection with Alan Edwards
Where: London
When: 10 Novmember
Cost: £210
Contact: 0208 762 4200
Level: Intermediate to advance, those who are looking for inspiration to combine cutting and colouring in creating beautiful commercial looks

Wella - Step into Management
When: 11 November
Where: Manchester
Cost: £517.50
Contact: 0161 834 2645
Level: Those new to management or those wishing to pursue salon management

Salon Success - Achieve Beyond Capability
When: 16 November
Where: Marlow
Cost: Call for details
Contact: 0845 659 0015
Level: Those wanting to achieve greater success

Great Lengths - Classic and Cold Fusion
Where: Leeds
When: 16 - 17 November
Cost:  Classic - £1,995 + VAT, Cold - £2,395 + VAT
Contact: 0113 216 3070
Level: Those who want to learn the essentials of hair extensions including health and safety, removal and maintenance

hob - Commercial Colour
When: 16-17 November
Where: London
Cost: £420
Contact:020 7485 7272 (option 3)
Level: Qualified stylists and colour technicians, confident in the basics

Clynol - Colour correct
Where: Clynol ASK Academy london
When: 16, 17 November
Cost: £190
Contact: ASK Academy 020 7724 7931
Level: Experienced colourists 

Aveda - Aveda Men: Design Tech
When: 16-18 November
Where: London
Cost: £525 (includes a copy of Aveda Men's curriculum on DVD)
Contact: 0870 428 6383
Level: Must be a qualified hairdresser for a minimum of three years

Matrix - Creative Cut, Colour & Finish with Andrew Jose
When: 23 November
Where: Liverpool
Cost: £240
Contact: 0845 345 4279
Level: Hairdressers with a minimum of 4 years experience

Racoon - Micro weft academy
When: 23 November
Where: Manchester
Cost: £195 + VAT Includes free application and removal kit
Contact: 01295 770999 Option 3
Level: NVQ 2 and upwards

Rainbow Room International - Colour Palette
When: 23 - 24 November
Where: Glasgow
Cost:£250
Contact: 0141 221 0400
Level: All

KMS - California Upstyling Foundations
When: 24 November
Where: London
Cost: £320
Contact: 020 7318 4000
Level: Qualified stylists

Goldwell - Color Fundamental 1 and 2
When: 24, 25 November
Where: London
Cost: £200
Contact: 020 7318 4000
Level: Experienced hairdressers new to working with Goldwell Cororance and Topchic or those starting their colouring career

Future Courses

If you know of a professional hair course that might be suitable for future listings. Please email alice.martin@rbi.co.uk.