Emerging Talent Trainee Placement - Historic England to Net Zero Project Assistant in Swindon

Summary

We are the public body that looks after England’s historic environment. We champion historic places, helping people understand, value and care for them.

Emerging Talent Programme

Historic England’s Emerging Talent Programme provides paid opportunities to those underrepresented in the heritage sector.

Our training placements are for young people aged 18 to 30 years old across three audiences:

• Black, Asian, or ethnic minorities
• Disabled people
• People who are disadvantaged by their social and/or economic background or circumstances

Purpose of the Placement

The placement will have the opportunity to gain practical experience of implementing sustainable procurement practices within a corporate setting.

The Carbon and Sustainability team is focused on supporting Historic England’s journey to net zero and becoming more sustainable through reporting our emissions and advising on the actions we need to take. Our programme is set up around several workstreams focusing on travel, change management, waste, procurement and IMT work. There are projects ongoing within all of them to support lowering emissions.

As a team we are involved in a lot of work across the organisation, providing insight into what we do more widely. While the team is based across England, the candidate will work from The Engine House in Swindon.

The Engine House on Firefly Avenue was home to ‘Firefly’-class locomotives, capable of holding 36 engines. The building dates from the 1840’s and was formerly the drawing offices of the Great Western Railway. Currently a grade II heritage building which houses Historic England & English Heritage it is also home to Historic England’s Archive and has a Public Library and archive access.

The placement will also be given the opportunity to explore the wider work of Historic England within the Southwest Region.

The successful candidate should be available to work from the Swindon office five days per week.

Sustainable procurement is an under‑developed area, and the successful candidate will be contributing to innovative work which will help Historic England and the heritage sector.

What you will be doing

• Working with live or recent examples of tenders to create case studies and demonstrations of how tenders can support our sustainability work
• Carrying out (primarily) desk‑based research on sustainable supply‑chain policies and summarising findings for presentation
• Supporting benchmarking exercises by comparing the organisation’s Sustainable Supply Chain Charter with similar approaches used elsewhere
• Assisting with data collection and analysis related to procurement spend, supplier sustainability information, or carbon impacts (where appropriate)
• Attending team meetings and stakeholder discussions to gain insight into procurement operations and sustainability priorities

Events and meetings

We will be hosting an in‑person Welcome Event for all Emerging Talent Placements in July.

Weekly team meetings • Stakeholder meetings (i.e. FM, Procurement and IMT) • Team Meeting (in person, Requires travel) • Historic England to Net Zero Oversight Board meeting

Behaviours we are looking for

• Curiosity – You show an interest in new things and actively seek out new information
• Connecting – You enjoy establishing relationships, seeking to support and help others
• Improver – You love to look for ways that things can be improved
• Persistence – You achieve success by keeping going, particularly when things are challenging

Target Start Date

July 2026

Why complete a placement with Historic England

Our placements will enable you to gain valuable hands‑on experience of working in the heritage sector, developing skills to enable you to take the next steps in your career.

Once you have completed your Emerging Talent Placement you will be eligible to apply for a 6‑month Step‑Up placement. These are paid training roles, based within a team for six months full time (part time will be considered). They are specifically targeted for people who have undertaken one of our Emerging Talent Placements over the summer, either this year, or in a previous year.

These placements are designed to give you that “step up” into a longer paid work in the heritage sector. They will also help you develop your essential skills and improve your employability.

How to Apply

At Historic England we use a hiring system called Applied. Applied is a behavioural science‑backed recruitment platform that reduces bias, improves quality of hire and increases diversity. We do not use CV application for the majority of our hiring processes. You will answer a selection of questions that allow our hiring teams to test your skills and suitability for the role.

At Historic England, we value the expertise and individuality each candidate brings and want to hear about this in your own words. If you require the use of AI tools or other resources to support your application, we ask that all information is factually accurate, original, and reflects your own experience. To best represent yourself, we encourage you to write in your own words and use AI‑generated content only as inspiration—not as direct input.