Bid and Proposal Apprenticeship - Level 3 in Exeter

The Met Office is delighted to open our advertising for Apprenticeships 2026. This is an exciting opportunity to join the Met Office as a Bids and Proposal Apprentice for up to 27 months commencing at the start of September 2026. You will develop skills and workplace experience in this occupation which may lead to a permanent position on successful completion of your apprenticeship or the knowledge to gain employment within the wider industry.

As our Bids and Proposal Apprentice, the job may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in the office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and the location advertised will be your contractual place of work. As apprentices are part of our Early Careers Programme, there is the expectation you attend the office once a week as a minimum in addition to your study day. Our opportunity is full time, 37 hours per week.

Our people are at the heart of what we do, and we’ll do our best to agree a working pattern that works for everyone.

This apprenticeship can offer you the support, training and industry recognised qualifications to get you on the path to a career in the Bidding and Proposals Profession. On completion of your apprenticeship you will be eligible for membership of Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP), the leading body for bid, proposal, tender, and capture professionals.

The role will sit in the Central Office to support bids and proposals across the full spectrum of sectors the Met Office provides products and services to. The team’s purpose is to provide the support, guidance, and insights to enable the wider Customer Team to successfully deliver its part of the Met Office strategy. The purpose of the role is to support the management of business processes related to bids and proposals, and to use these processes to aid Business Managers in the development of bids and proposals to the highest possible standard.

We would look for you to join us in September 2026 with your apprenticeship training beginning shortly afterwards. You will be managed by a line manager and have a mentor to offer further support. You will have on the job training and in house development opportunities during your apprenticeship. You will have 1 day per week dedicated to your 20% off the job training with the training provider, JC Training & Consultancy. They will deliver the off the job training in an online style and you will also have regular review meetings with your tutor and line manager every 3 months. As well as the taught content, there will be a large amount of self-study, regular assignments, and an end-point assessment period. You must be committed to your own development and training as this element forms a significant aspect of a modern apprenticeship.

Please note: Before applying, we recommend you consider if the delivery method suits your learner needs. We would also recommend you look at the information about the apprenticeship on the training provider's website as well as researching the requirements of an apprenticeship to help you decide whether an apprenticeship is right for you.

Support the Process Manager to review, maintain and continually improve existing bid and proposal process documentation, within the scope of the Document Management Policy and wider Quality Management System and ISO9001 standards. Review, maintain and continually improve relevant bid and proposal supporting documentation e.g. Bids Library; to ensure it supports the development of high quality and consistent bids. Maintain a watch on industry best practice with regard to bids and proposals to identify, evaluate, prioritise and implement opportunities for continual improvement. Identify, establish, monitor and report metrics to monitor bid and proposal process performance. Highlight deficiencies to the Process Manager and assist in identifying and implementation of remedial actions to address non-conformities and inefficiencies. Communication of bid and proposal process changes in conjunction with Customer Team Change Manager, championing bids and proposal processes to the wider Customer Team, including during assurance training. Identify, establish, monitor and report metrics to monitor bid success rates for both value and volume. Assist Account Managers and Business Managers with preparing bids and proposals through guidance on consistent best practice and provision of supporting materials and tasks.

Essential Criteria, skills and experience:

• Good communication skills, both written and oral, with an ability to work with a variety of key contacts.
• Ability to analyse and understand often complex and interdependent information.
• Demonstrable attention to detail, with the ability to apply judgment in identifying priority information to inform decision makers.
• Ability to work independently or part of a team; drive and determination to identify and resolve issues.
• Ability to present complex management information in a clear and concise manner, using different tools, such as the O365 suite.

In addition to the criteria listed above, you must also be eligible to qualify for apprenticeship funding by meeting the following:

• Not be enrolled on another funded apprenticeship or another funded further education or higher education programme at the time you start this apprenticeship.
• Are applying for an apprenticeship that is unrelated to any qualifications you already hold at the same or higher level than this apprenticeship.
• Are living in England at the time the apprenticeship commences.

Please note: suitability and eligibility will also need to be verified by the training provider.

If you share our values, we’d love to hear from you! Click apply to begin your application. Please complete your career history (this could include voluntary or work experience roles) and provide evidence against each of the essential criteria in the supporting statement questionnaire. We recommend candidates use the CARL method (Context, Action, Result and Learning) for presenting evidence of experience and skills.

Closing date: 23:59 8th March 2026. Please note we often receive a high volume of applications, but we will contact everyone who applies once the closing date has passed. Interviews will be completed by end of April 2026.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact us at careers@metoffice.gov.uk. If you’re considering applying and need support to do so, please get in touch. You can request adjustments either within your application or by contacting us.