Tesco launches trainee management scheme for 16- to 24-year-olds

Tesco is today set to begin a management scheme for 16-year-old school leavers that offers them an "earn-while-you-learn" alternative to the education system.

Applicants to the supermarket's fast-track two-year scheme, which earns recruits three A-level equivalents and the opportunity to work towards a Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award, will be given the chance to reach store manager level by the age of 23, where they can earn at least £50,000, according to the Times.

David Potts, director of retail for Tesco, said: "Mainstream education is not for everyone. We want to show that there is another way for young people to progress into well-paid jobs with prospects."

Potts joined Tesco at 16 and, in 1981, became the company's youngest store manager at the age of 24.

About 29% of Tesco's new positions are filled by 16 to 24-year-olds.