That the Parliament congratulates the recent graduates from the Scottish cohort of the Marks & Start programme; recognises that the Marks & Start programme has been delivered by a partnership between The King’s Trust and Marks & Spencer (M&S) for more than 20 years, helping young people build confidence, develop workplace skills and gain valuable experience with an M&S store; further recognises that, since 2013, more than 1500 young people in Scotland have participated in the programme, with 80% going on to secure a role within M&S; notes that the celebration event on 14 October 2026 brought together young people from Dundee who have recently completed the four-week programme, alongside representatives from both The King’s Trust and M&S, as well as friends and family; further notes that over 90% of the recent cohort have now secured job offers; believes that employability programmes such as Marks & Start can be important to help young people into employment; thanks all at The King’s Trust and colleagues across the participating M&S stores for their work to support young people across Scotland, and wishes all recent graduates of the programme all the best as they progress into the world of work.
Supported by: Colin Beattie, Dawn Black, Gary Bouse, Miles Briggs, Martyn Day, Stuart McMillan, Laura Mitchell, Paul Sweeney, David Torrance