Level 2 Level 2 Fashion & Retail

By studying Level 2 Fashion & Retail, you’ll explore the entire fashion retail journey from product design to shop floor, giving you an insight into the industry as a whole. You’ll learn about every area of fashion business through vocational study and practical workshops.

We’ll teach you the essentials of the industry, including fashion design, buying, marketing and retail management. You’ll also develop your teamwork, presentation, time management, organisation and communication skills.

Through a combination of lessons, workshops and live projects set by major brands, you’ll strengthen your analytical and creative understanding. You’ll take regular trips to galleries, exhibitions and stores for inspiration, exploring designers, brands and trends from all areas of fashion.

We'll help you discover your talents and decide what you enjoy, helping you to choose your career path. You’ll finish with an academic qualification that provides the perfect pathway to one of our specialist Level 3 courses or an apprenticeship, setting you up for your dream job in the industry.

The Fashion Retail Academy is an approved centre for UAL Awarding Body Level 2 Award and Diploma in Fashion Business and Retail.

This course was previously known as Level 2 Fashion Retail.

• History of Fashion Retail: An introduction to the fashion retail environment. Understand the purpose of various departments in a fashion brand, and how they all work together.
• Contextual Research: Choose a brand and research its unique aesthetic, discovering how it’s evolved over the years.
• Communication Skills: Learn the skills and techniques you need to effectively share your research and ideas with a wide range of audiences.
• Design and Production: Discover the process of developing a garment from scratch. This project is completed in collaboration with a brand.

• Buying and Selling: Explore how buying and selling work in the fashion retail industry. Learn how to edit a capsule collection and create successful range plans.
• Visual Merchandising: An introduction to visual merchandising and how brands communicate with consumers using visual displays.
• Personal Project and Presentation in Fashion Business and Retail: Combine all of the skills and knowledge you have learnt during the course and create a final research and design project.

We're proud of our exceptional industry links to over 250 major brands. All our tutors have worked in the industry, and have plenty of knowledge and experience to share. We’ll teach you to develop a strong professional network that will support you throughout your career.

As part of our Level 2 Fashion & Retail course, you’ll take part in projects set by our brand partners. These are designed to give you a deeper understanding of the industry and its current challenges.

Previously, Level 2 students collaborated with All Saints and M&S to create garments that were inspired by a current exhibition. During these projects, students visited these retailers every month to collect information about shop windows, visual merchandising, in-store promotions, seasonal fabrics and trends, and ethical responsibility. 

Level 2 Fashion Retail acts as a springboard for further study. It’s a great place to start if you’re not quite sure which specific discipline you’d like to progress in. 

When you complete the course, you’ll be ready to start a more specialist Level 3 course, or an apprenticeship with a fashion brand.

96% of our Level 2 Fashion Retail students progressed to another further education course!

Awarding body
UAL Awarding Body

Qualification title
UAL Level 2 Award and Diploma in Fashion Business and Retail

Age requirement
16-18

Course duration
1 year, delivered over 2 days per week (We have a limited number of places for Maths & English resits if required. These will be on an extra day each week.)

You’ll attend the Fashion Retail Academy for 2 full days per week (totalling an average of 16 hours per week) and you'll be expected to complete 2 days of independent study and coursework each week. Many of our students take on part-time work on their remaining free days to boost their industry experience.  

Course fees

Tuition fees for this course are fully-funded for students aged 16-18

A £75 enrichment fee is due at enrolment to cover the cost of activities throughout your course. This includes educational visits, guest speakers, specialist equipment and materials, and access to careers fairs, UCAS events, and other progression-focused opportunities.

Fees & Funding

Entry requirements

For non-UK qualifications, please provide an ENIC Statement of Comparability. 

If you're applying from a non-English speaking country, you'll need at least 5.5 overall and in each section of IELTS test for English language. 

Assessment
Assessment is continuous throughout the course. You must pass each unit to progress to the next. Once you have passed all units in Terms 1 and 2, you'll move to the final units in Term 3. When you complete the course, you'll be graded at either Pass, Merit or Distinction.

Offers
After completing our online form, we'll process your application and send you the outcome by post and email in 5-10 working days. We process applications in the order we receive them, and offers are made on a first-come, first-served basis. 

• If you have your exam results and you meet the course's entry requirements, you'll be given an unconditional offer.
• If you don't have your results yet, your offer will be conditional on you meeting the entry requirements.

Your place at the FRA is only secure after you have completed enrolment.

2025-2026

*Subject to change

AUTUMN TERM

• Academic transition week - Week commencing 25th August 2025
• Term starts - Week commencing 1st September 2025
• Half term - Week commencing 27th October 2025
• Term resumes - Week commencing 3rd November 2025
• Term ends - Week commencing 15th December
• Winter break - Week commencing 22nd December 2025

SPRING TERM

• Term starts - Week commencing 5th January 2026
• Term ends - Week commencing 30th March 2026
• Spring break - Week commencing 6th April 2026

SUMMER TERM

• Term starts - Week commencing 13th April 2026
• Term ends - Week commencing 1st June 2026

2026-2027

TBC

Tristan Thomas - 'Labels' Concept Magazine