Business Support Apprenticeship (Business Administration Level 3)

We are seeking an Executive Officer apprentice who is passionate about public service and committed to making a positive impact on people's lives. In this role, you will provide high-quality administrative, financial, and strategic support across the directorate. You will also work closely with Senior Civil Servants and their teams to help deliver key priorities and initiatives.

You will be joining the Further Education Directorate Support Team and the key responsibilities will include:

• Personal Assistant Support
  • Provide high-level personal assistant support to the Director and Deputy Directors as required.
  • Manage complex diaries, schedule meetings, and coordinate travel arrangements.
• Operational Support
  • Deliver efficient and accurate administrative support across the Directorate.
  • Manage cross-functional and ad hoc commissions, proactively identifying and resolving issues.
  • Prepare meeting agendas, take minutes, and follow up on action points.
  • Handle confidential correspondence and ensure timely responses.
  • Act as the first point of contact for internal and external stakeholders.
• Financial Administration
  • Administer financial processes including raising purchase orders, processing payments, and monitoring budgets.
  • Collaborate with Finance Business Partners and Central Finance to ensure compliance and accuracy.
• Internal Communications
  • Provide clear commissions and steers to colleagues in advance of meetings and events.
  • Coordinate contributions from relevant stakeholders.
  • Develop and maintain engaging internal communications, including Directorate-wide staff huddles.
• Rewards and Recognition
  • Support the In-Year Award process by coordinating nominations and maintaining accurate records.
  • Organise moderation meetings and draft related communications.
  • Track and report on Instant Rewards.
• Resourcing and Recruitment
  • Assist the Senior Management Team with resourcing activities, including vacancy tracking and recruitment support.
  • Support onboarding processes and maintain accurate HR records.
  • Resolve resourcing and recruitment-related issues where appropriate.
• Learning and Development
  • Promote and support learning initiatives across the Directorate.
  • Encourage staff development and identify training opportunities.
  • Facilitate access to learning resources.

As this role includes completion of the Business Administration Apprenticeship (Level 3), please check the eligibility requirements below using the apprenticeship standard: Business administrator / Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

You must have lived in the UK for 3 years prior to apprenticeship start date and not be undertaking another apprenticeship at the same time. You must not already have a substantial amount of the skills and knowledge that is covered in the contents of the apprenticeship standard. You must not have already worked in a similar role, or your previous learning, and/or work experience covers the contents (Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours) of the apprenticeship standard.

Please Do Not Apply If:

• You already have all the skills and knowledge that is covered in the contents of the apprenticeship standard.
• You have already worked in a similar role, or your previous learning, and/or work experience covers the contents (Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours) of the apprenticeship standard.
• You have a degree or equivalent in the same or similar subject.

At the enrolment stage, the individual's eligibility will be checked by the training provider.

Essential Criteria:

• Engagement Skills: Demonstrated ability to build positive relationships and communicate effectively.
• Team Collaboration: Enthusiastic about supporting and challenging colleagues, committed to the continuous improvement of the team and have an interest in the responsibilities of the team.
• Organisational Skills: Able to effectively plan and prioritise own work and manage calendars and react to clashes in a timely manner. Support Director/Deputy Director colleagues effectively within their preferred way of working.
• Confidentiality: Ability to handle confidential information with discretion.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office including Excel and other digital collaboration tools.

Alongside your salary of £29,180, Department for Education contributes £8,453 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Applicants currently holding a permanent post in the Civil Service should note that, if successful, their salary on appointment would be determined by the Department's transfer / promotion policies.

As a member of the DfE, you will be entitled to join the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme, which many experts agree is one of the most generous in the UK. You will have 25 days leave, increasing by 1 day every year to a maximum of 30 days after five years' service. In addition, all staff receive the King's Birthday privilege holiday and 8 days' bank and public holidays.

We offer flexible working arrangements, such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours. Most DfE employees will be working a hybrid pattern, spending at least 60% of their time in an office or work setting. Changes to these working arrangements are available in exceptional circumstances but must be agreed with the line manager and in line with the requirements of the role.

Travel to your primary office location will not be paid for by DfE, but costs for travel to an office which is not your main location will be covered.

As an organisation, which exists to support education and lifelong learning, we offer our staff excellent professional development opportunities.

Selection process details

Application: To apply for this role, you will be required to provide a CV and Statement of Suitability (statement max word count 1000 words). We will use your CV and statement to assess your suitability for the role against the essential criteria listed in the person specification section above.

Interview: At interview you will be asked questions to assess your experience in line with the essential criteria listed above.

Other Information: In your application, please don’t include personal information that identifies you. This means we can recruit based on your knowledge and skills, and not background, gender or ethnicity - it’s called name blind recruitment.

Please ensure that you remove from your application, all references to your: name/title, educational institutions, age, gender, email address, postal address, phone number, nationality/immigration status.

We understand that you might use AI and other resources for your application; however, please ensure all information you provide is factually accurate, truthful, and original and doesn’t include ideas or work that isn’t your own. This is so that your application is authentically and credibly your own.

We reserve the right to raise the minimum pass mark in the event of a high volume or strong field of candidates.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK from the location options provided and not from overseas.

The government is committed to supporting apprenticeships, enabling people to learn and progress in a role whilst earning. We want to monitor the number of people who have completed apprenticeships who are now applying to progress further in their career and are asking this question to all candidates, on all vacancies. You will be asked a question as part of the application process about any previous apprenticeships you have completed. Your response to this question will not affect your application and it is not a requirement of the role to have completed a previous apprenticeship.

If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check may be carried out.

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Department of Education of your intention by emailing Pre-Employment.Checks.DFE@education.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

Department for Education do not cover the cost of travel to your interview/assessment unless otherwise stated. A reserve list may be held for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made. Candidates will be posted in merit order based upon location preference. Where more than one location is advertised you will be asked to state your preferred location.

New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band. Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences.

This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

Terms and conditions of candidates transferring from ALBs and NDPBs:

Bodies that are not accredited by the Civil Service Commission and are not able to advertise at Across Government on Civil Service jobs will be treated as external new starters and will come into DfE on modernised terms and conditions with a salary at the band minimum. Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission but do not have civil service status will be offered modernised terms and will not have continuous service recognised for leave or sickness benefits. Salaries should be offered at band minimum, but there is some flexibility where this would cause a detriment to the individual. Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission and do have Civil Service status will be treated as OGD transfers. Staff appointed on lateral transfer will move on to pre-modernised DfE terms (unless they were on modernised terms in their previous organisation). Staff appointed on promotion will move on to modernised DfE terms. Staff will transfer over on their existing salary (on lateral transfer) and any pay above the DfE pay band maximum will be paid as a mark time allowance. Staff moving on promotion will have their salaries calculated using the principles set out in the attached OGD transfer supplementary information.

Reasonable adjustment: If a Person With Disabilities Is Put At a Substantial Disadvantage Compared To a Non-disabled Person, We Have a Duty To Make Reasonable Changes To Our Processes. If You Need a Change To Be Made So That You Can Make Your Application, You Should: Contact Department of Education via centralrecruitment.operations@education.gov.uk soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs. Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process.

For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional. Please refer to the attached ‘Reasonable Adjustments Guide 05_2025 – accessible version’ at the bottom of the advert, for further information.

Childcare Vouchers: Any move to Department for Education (DfE) will mean you will no longer be able to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security: Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.

Nationality requirements: This Job Is Broadly Open To The Following Groups: UK nationals, nationals of the Republic of Ireland, nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK, nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS), individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020, Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service.

Further information on nationality requirements can be found on the Civil Service website.

Working for the Civil Service: The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants:

Job Contact: Joanna Thompson-Radford
Email: joanna.thompson-radford@education.gov.uk

Recruitment team: Email: Centralrecruitment.operations@education.gov.uk

Further information: The Department for Education’s recruitment processes are underpinned by the Civil Service Commissioners Recruitment Principles, which outlines that selection for appointment is made on merit based on fair and open competition. You have the right to complain if you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles. In the first instance, you should raise the matter directly with the department concerned via CentralRecruitment.Operations@education.gov.uk. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission.