Business Support Apprentice, Colchester

Fixed Term, Full Time

£14,567 per annum rising to £23,557 per annum on the second year

Location: Colchester

Working Style: Anywhere worker

Closing Date: 16th June 2025

Are you looking to take first steps in starting a career in Business Administration? Would you love to work alongside a supportive, friendly, welcoming and high achieving team? This could be the opportunity you are looking for!

You will have the option to choose either Magnet House, Clacton-On-Sea or Rowan House, Colchester as your working base. As this is an apprenticeship opportunity, you will be required to work onsite 2-3 days per week to enable support, learning and development.

Benefits:

• Healthy work life balance; flexible and hybrid working options.
• Wide range of learning and development opportunities.
• IT equipment and home-working equipment supplied.
• 26 days annual leave + bank holidays + choice to buy extra.
• Generous Local Government Salary related pension scheme.
• Access to hundreds of discounts and benefits through Essex Rewards.
• Access to our health and wellbeing support platform with LifeWorks.
• Disability Confident Leader: we are committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job.
• Up to 4 days per annum volunteering leave.
• National Apprenticeship Wage for the first 12 months of your Apprenticeship. After 12 months of service, your salary will increase to the National Living Wage (currently £23,557 per annum as of 01 April 2025).
• A Customer Service Level 2 or a Business Administrator Level 3 qualification via Adult Community Learning (ACL).

Whilst undertaking an apprenticeship within Essex County Council, you can expect to be supported from your first day. You will be invited to attend a specific onboarding event, have access to exclusive training material via My Learning platform, enrolled in the apprenticeship channel alongside colleagues on similar paths, invited to frequent gatherings, and offered peer-to-peer guidance. Additionally, you will have the chance to showcase your apprenticeship experience to external audiences. Apprenticeships are a valued career pathway to achieving your ambitions within Essex County Council, whilst gaining a qualification.

Our Level 2 apprenticeship is an intermediate level apprenticeship - it is the equivalent to 5 GCSE passes. Our Level 3 apprenticeship is an advanced apprenticeship - it is the equivalent to two A Levels or T Level. These apprenticeships are a fantastic steppingstone into your preferred career. You will work under the guidance of experienced professionals to develop a solid foundation in your chosen profession, while also contributing to the overall goals and objectives of the Essex County Council.

There is every opportunity to progress to further roles and training within Essex County Council. You will have the chance to put forward your ideas, grow your skillset and collaborate with an innovative team in a collaborative environment.

What our apprentices say:

• "I really enjoyed my apprenticeship with ECC, I loved that the majority of the apprenticeship is on the job learning and minimal classroom work. The opportunities for career development have been much wider than I originally thought, and the apprenticeship is such a great way to start your career and get your foot in the door with your local council/government."
• "I love the apprenticeship process as you’re getting paid as you learn. I have been able to make good connections with other employees and really good relationships throughout my journey so far. It’s a great starting point to anyone who hasn’t got a clear idea of what work they would like to pursue. Also, the apprenticeship allowed me to try multiple different types of jobs when opportunities came up, so I was able to see what I liked, and I was good at."

The Role:

Essex County Council is looking for a motivated and enthusiastic individual to join our team as an Apprentice within our Business Support function. The role will be extremely rewarding if you have an interest in office administration, enjoy helping people and being part of a busy team in a challenging role and as an entry point, for someone considering a career in Administration, Local Government or Social Care. ECC highly values its apprentices and successful candidates will be encouraged to develop and in time progress within the organisation, with over 85% securing permanent roles during their apprenticeship.

This position provides the work-based experience to complement the learning-based elements of the Apprenticeship Framework and will offer you a supportive environment in which to gain a wealth of experience and transferable skills such as IT systems, organisational skills, effective teamwork and communication. Business Support provide high quality administrative support to all Essex County Council front-line services, so can offer experience in all aspects of customer service and administrative tasks during the apprenticeship.

About You:

• Educated to RQF level 2 (GCSE) or equivalent by experience.
• Highly organised and reliable.
• Capable of prioritising a demanding workload and have a "can do" attitude.
• Able to take ownership of work and achieve the agreed commitments.
• Able to communicate effectively as well as have an ability to build and establish relationships and provide a high-quality service to customers.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office/Office 365 applications and willing to learn new systems.
• Have a friendly approach and a good phone manner.
• Emotionally intelligent.
• Good teamwork skills and a commitment to collaboration.
• Experienced in a working environment is helpful, but not essential.

Essential Requirements for the role:

• You will need to be 16 years of age at the start of the apprenticeship.
• You will need to have the right to work and study in England.
• You will have been ordinarily resident in the UK or EEA for three years before the apprenticeship start date.
• You cannot have previously completed a qualification that is Level 2 or above in a field that is related to Customer Services or Business Administration.
• As apprentices have employed status you must have the right to permanently live, work and study in the UK. Apprenticeships are not covered by student visas.

Please note that we must be provided with your GCSE certificate at the final stage of the recruitment process. If you have international equivalent qualifications a NARIC Statement of Comparability must be provided. If you do not already hold one you can purchase online.

What will you be doing?

You will assist with the delivery of routine administrative tasks, dealing with day-to-day work including (but not limited to):

• Inputting data from source documents into the relevant recording system, checking the accuracy, verifying and correcting data.
• Responding to emails.
• Telephone calls.
• Front facing customer service.
• Maintain your own diary and work pattern management.
• Photocopying/ scanning.
• Sending letters and dealing with incoming post.
• Attend meetings with team colleagues and Managers, either in person or by video.
• Working from home or in an office space.
• Work alongside other administrative assistants and apprentices who will train you and support you through the day-to-day work.
• Follow ECC policies and procedures for task completion and our expected standards of behaviours.

Why Essex?

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process.

We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

How to apply:

Start your journey within Business Administration by clicking the APPLY button now! If you are interested in finding out more about this role or require further information, we would love to hear from you.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained.

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

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Additional Information:

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email.