Upon successful completion, learners will gain an international recognised qualification which guarantees that they have the skills, knowledge, and abilities required to carry out their role successfully and proficiently.

Assessment is carried out in the workplace, thereby minimising any time learners would need to be away from their work.

The SVQ can be offered in any of the following modes:

• full-time
• part-time (eg day-release)

This SVQ is suitable for:

• learners who wish to pursue a career in retail
• individuals who are currently in employment and who wish to obtain a formal qualification or to support continuing professional development

Access

Entry is at the discretion of the centre.

Candidates should be in a job or placement where they are carrying out relevant tasks and responsibilities, which allow then to gather the required evidence.

No prior qualifications are required to undertake this qualification, although experience or relevant qualifications in retail, eg SVQ Retail Skills at SCQF level 5, would be an advantage.

The level 6 award could provide progression to:

• further professional and academic development; for example, a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Retail Management
• employment in the retail sector, in a team leader/supervisor, customer-facing role

Centres with devolved authority for approval should use their own internal approval process.

Centres without devolved authority are required to come forward for approval and should contact SQA's Business Development Team for guidance.

Assessors and verifiers must be able to meet SQA's general requirements for technical/occupational competence as outlined in the Systems and Qualification Approval Guide. The specific delivery requirements are set out in the Assessment Strategy.

For general information on how to assess this qualification, please refer to the document Information for Assessment of Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs). For detailed guidance on how to assess this particular SVQ, please refer to the Assessment Strategy and Assessors Guidelines for SVQs in Retail at SCQF levels 4, 5 & 6.

The SVQ Retail (Sales Professional) at SCQF level 6 consists of three mandatory units and seven optional units.

For details of the units making up the SVQ, please refer to the Qualification Structure. (180 KB)

Core Skills mapping is carried out by the SSC responsible for the development of an SVQ. It is a requirement of Qualifications Scotland Accreditation that every SVQ submission includes information on where possible opportunities for candidates to develop Core Skills exist across the mandatory units.

Centres should note that mapping is not audited or validated against the Core Skills framework/units so is not accepted by Qualifications Scotland awarding body as evidence towards achievement of the Core Skills units.

Core skills signposting (86 KB)

This SVQ is a mandatory component in the Level 6 Retail Modern Apprenticeship.

SQA also offers the following components of this Apprenticeship:

GP1A 23 SVQ in Retail (Management) at SCQF level 6

GP1F 23 SVQ in Retail (Visual Merchandising) at SCQF level 6

Assessment strategy (147 KB)

SVQ Retail Combined Units

• SVQ Retail Combined Units (14.64 MB)

Evidence requirements

• Evidence Requirements

Assessor's Guidelines

• SVQ Retail Skills SCQF level 4, SVQ Retail Skills SCQF level 5, SVQ Retail (Sales Professional) SCQF level 6, SVQ Retail (Visual Merchandising) SCQF level 6, SVQ Retail (Management) SCQF level 6 (726 KB)

• Information for candidates starting an SVQ (382 KB)
• Candidate Portfolio A4 Cover (118 KB)
• Candidate printable blank recording forms (245 KB)
• Candidate blank recording forms (Template for Word) (134 KB)

• 2021 Qualification Verification Summary Report  (129 KB)
• 2019 Qualification Verification Summary Report (178 KB)
• 2018 Qualification Verification Summary Report (168 KB)