Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships are a great way to earn while you learn.
All our apprenticeship vacancies are advertised via this website.
For apprenticeship enquiries please email JPUH-Apprenticeships@jpaget.nhs.uk
An apprenticeship is a work-based method of training that involves job shadowing and performing tasks under direct or indirect supervision.
Apprentices are supported and guided by their departments as they work through their apprenticeship qualification, while also maintaining the benefits of being a full-time member of staff.
Apprentices are contracted to work for a fixed term of 12/15 months on an Intermediate Apprenticeship, 18 months for an Advanced Apprenticeship or 24 or more months for a Higher Apprenticeship
All apprenticeships are full time so you will be required to work 37.5 hours per week.
Apprentices get paid Apprenticeship wage for the first twelve months of their contract (£240 per week), or the Enhanced Wage (£259.84) if they are required to work weekends. For the remaining time on the programme, they are paid national minimum wage for their age. These figures are accurate as of April 2024.
Apprenticeships include the following:
- Learning on the job and carrying out training which is relevant to your job role.
- Spending 20% of your working hours completing off the job training. Please note: working hours are capped at 30 hours a week for funding purposes only. For a full-time apprentice working more than 30 hours a week, this is an average of six hours a week over the planned duration of the apprenticeship. This can include:
- Completion of coursework
- Undertaking the Cavendish Care Certificate within the first 12 weeks of employment (if a Healthcare Apprentice)
- Practical training: shadowing, mentoring, working with other team members
- College monthly workshop days or personal study days
- Having an assessor from an external training provider who will visit you once every four to six weeks to set work and observe you at your workplace. They also provide support and guidance throughout.
- Getting the chance to learn about different roles within your department and the Trust as a whole. Also, getting an insight into the different career pathways we offer and where you might like to progress to in the future.
- Completing an End Point Assessment during the final stages of your apprenticeship to achieve a grade of Pass, Merit or Distinction.
As part of the new Apprenticeship Standards, all apprentices will have to complete an End Point Assessment (EPA) towards the end of their Apprenticeship. This is to ensure that an apprentice is fully competent in their subject before being given an Apprenticeship certification and that they can demonstrate the knowledge, skills and behaviours of the apprenticeship standard that they are completing.
Apprentices will be fully supported and prepped to enter their End Point Assessments and will not be made to complete it until the employer, assessor and apprentice all feel it’s a suitable time.
For each apprenticeship, the EPA can vary however they all follow a similar structure. They can include the following components:
- Multiple choice tests
- Interviews
- Observations in practice
- Portfolios of Work
- Professional discussions
After passing the End Point Assessment, the apprentice will achieve either a Pass, Merit or Distinction. It is possible to fail, however the apprentices will be supported with retakes.
What are the benefits?
- You earn a salary while you learn.
- You gain a qualification which is all paid for by your employer.
- You will receive 27 days of paid holiday plus Public Bank Holidays.
- You qualify for NHS and Student discounts across many retailers.
- Apprentices are eligible for free car parking at the JPUH site.
- You will have a mentor in your area of work for informal support and guidance.
- You will be given the opportunity to attend relevant training days and partake in additional courses such as touch typing and manual handling.
The chance to attend events:
- Our Apprentices are actively encouraged to take part in enrichment activities, such as fundraising, careers event and trips. We aim to offer Apprentices the opportunity to broaden their experience whilst working at the JPUH.
- There is an opportunity to become a Health Ambassador. Many Apprentices join this scheme to allow them to share their experiences at local schools, colleges and other events whilst promoting the NHS as an employer of choice.
- Every year, as part of Apprenticeship Week, we hold an event for all of our Apprentices to attend to count towards their qualification.
The end result
- You will have the opportunity to be nominated as ‘Apprentice of the Year’ in the hospital's Paget's People Awards; the winner will be presented with the award at an exclusive dinner.
- You will gain a nationally recognised qualification that will be valid for any employer.
- You will gain specific skills and knowledge you need to succeed in your chosen career pathway.
- You will develop basic skills and knowledge that can be applied to a variety of different careers.
- Hands-on training will give you a real chance to put your skills into practice and allow you to gain more confidence in a working environment.
- You will achieve a final grade of Pass, Merit or Distinction.
Please note: these are examples of the type of apprenticeships that are available. The below is purely for information purposes about our apprenticeships – these are not live vacancies.
Business Administration
Good business conduct and administration skills are important to organisations; good administration on a day-to-day basis helps to ensure the office runs smoothly. Working in administration requires a strong sense of responsibility and good organisational skills, accuracy and attention to detail.
Business Administration apprenticeships are typically situated in outpatient clinics, on ward receptions, supporting medical secretaries and in support teams across the James Paget.
Essential aspects of this qualification can include:
- Functional Skills in English, Maths and ICT
- Personal Learning & Thinking Skills
- Employee Rights & Responsibilities
- 20% off-the-job training
On completion of the qualification combined with the hands on experience, a relevant career path to follow could be: personal assistant; receptionist; administration assistant; data entry clerk; medical secretary.
After completion, the apprentice will gain either a Level 2 Business Administration NVQ or a Level 3 Business Administration NVQ, depending on the level of apprenticeship undertaken.
Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship is equivalent to five GCSE passes.
Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship is equivalent to two A’ Level passes.
Healthcare Support Worker
Healthcare Support Workers (HCSWs) work as part of a team to provide high quality, compassionate healthcare to patients and individuals. HCSWs carry out clinical duties such as checking things like blood pressure, helping patients go to the toilet and eat, as well as non-clinical duties like tidying the work area and making beds. While working in a clinical environment and dealing face-to-face with a range of patients and people, HCSWs need to treat people with dignity and respect, while being adaptable and showing resilience and self-awareness.
Healthcare Support Worker apprentices are typically situated in clinical environments, from wards to outpatient clinics; supporting various clinical teams throughout the James Paget University Hospital.
Key elements of the Healthcare Support Worker qualification include:
- Communication
- Health Intervention
- Personal and People Development
- Health, Safety and Security
- Equality and Diversity
- The Cavendish Care Certificate
On completion of the apprenticeship, some of our previous apprentices have gone on to be Healthcare Assistants, Therapy Assistants and Healthcare Assistant Practitioners in the Trust. Some of our apprentices have also gone to university to study Nursing, Physiotherapy, Paramedic Science and more.
End Point Assessment:
As part of the new Apprenticeship Standard, each HCSW apprentice will be required to undertake an End Point Assessment. This includes the following components: a multiple choice test to assess the knowledge components of the apprenticeship; an observation of practice undertaken in the workplace to assess the skills and behaviours that the apprentice can show; an evidence portfolio completed by the apprentice with an interview demonstrating the knowledge, skills and behaviours of the apprentice in practice.
After passing the End Point Assessment, the apprentice will achieve either a Pass/Merit/Distinction in the Healthcare Support Worker Level 2 Standard.
Functional Skills
When undertaking an apprenticeship at the JPUH, we also offer the opportunity for apprentices to complete functional skills courses in IT, English and Maths.
This is so you can improve your current qualifications while you are working at the JPUH and meet the requirements to complete your apprenticeship. If you are an apprentice that holds the minimum grade requirements, it will be necessary for you to undertake these functional skills in order to complete the apprenticeship.
You will need to apply online for an apprenticeship vacancy at the James Paget.
Apprenticeships at the hospital are advertised on the James Paget website here; http://jobs.jpaget.nhs.uk/
or on NHS Jobs - https://www.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate
If you register on the NHS Jobs website you will be able to select that you are interested in apprenticeships at the James Paget and will be sent notifications of any new positions that arise.
In order to qualify for funding individuals must:
- be aged 16 or above
- not be enrolled on another apprenticeship, or another DfE funded FE/HE programme, at the same time as any new apprenticeship they start
- spend at least 50% of their working hours in England over the duration of the apprenticeship
- have the right to work in England
- be a citizen of a country within the European Economic Area (EEA) (including other countries determined within the EEA or those with bilateral agreements), or have the right of abode in the UK, and have been ordinarily resident in the EEA (including other countries determined within the EEA or those with bilateral agreements)
- or a non-EEA citizen with permission from the UK government to live in the UK, (not for educational purposes) and have been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least the previous three years before the start of learning.
Online applications require:
- A comprehensive list of existing qualifications**
- Any previous employment / work experience / voluntary work
- References
- Detailed supporting information stating why you would be the best for the job
**Please ensure that you clearly state your qualifications in your applications; e.g. if asked for a GCSE Maths qualification simply writing ‘Maths, C/ Grade 4’ is not sufficient. Please include a little more detail, for example ‘GCSE Maths C’ or ‘Functional Skills Maths Level 2’.
Each vacancy will have a Job Description outlining the tasks and duties of the apprenticeship. There will also be a Person Specification which will outline the requirements of the role. Please make sure you check both of these prior to applying.
If your application is successful you will be invited to attend an interview; you will be notified by email or text message so it is important to check both of these regularly once you have submitted your application.
All offers of employment are subject to two references, a medical background check and a DBS check.
For further enquiries, please contact the Apprenticeship Team on 01493 452021 or 01493 453737 or email JPUH-Apprenticeships@jpaget.nhs.uk.
Apprentices are based across various areas of the hospital. Apprenticeships vacancies become available when a department is able to facilitate an apprentice within their team.
Previous departments who have recruited an apprentice:
Clinical Apprenticeships: ICU; Ward 18; Radiology; CT & MRI Scanning; Ultrasound; Ward 15; Ward 4; Ward 5; Ward 6; Orthopaedic Outpatients; Renal; Physiotherapy; Ward 9; Maternity; Palliative Care; Ward 16; HSDU; Ward 12
Business Administration Apprenticeships: Ward 12; Ward 11; Corporate Training; Finance; Patient Transport; Research and Development; Communications Team; Medical Secretariat; Day Care Unit; Louise Hamilton Centre; Central Recruitment Team; Theatres Reception; Paediatric Secretariat; EADU; A&E; Nurse Education and Practice Development; Central Nurse Bank; Transformation Team; Service Improvement Team; Physiotherapy; Dietetics; Newberry Clinic; ENT Outpatients; Supplies Support Services in Healthcare: Domestic Services; Ophthalmology; Corporate Affairs; Pre-Employment Team ; Endoscopy.
Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship are for 12/15 months, Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeships are for 18 months and Level 4 or Higher Apprenticeships are for 24+ months.
A position is not guaranteed at the end of an apprenticeship, however you are in a great position to apply for related employment. Your manager and the Apprenticeship Team will support you in seeking a new job and/or further training.
Apprentices are offered support throughout the duration of their employment here. An apprentice’s manager is responsible for allocating jobs and ensuring the apprentice has everything they need in terms of training to complete their apprenticeship.
Each Apprentice is also allocated a mentor within their department who is assigned to support and guide them where needed; they are available to offer informal advice and help with their job role/ tasks.
Apprentices are also given a tutor from the training provider who will give them coursework to complete monthly. Their tutor will also be able to support them with personal matters and advise where necessary.
The JPUH has an Apprenticeship team who help from the point of recruitment to the Apprentices completion date and are always available for Apprentices to speak to. The apprenticeship team meet with apprentices every three months to find out how they are getting on and whether any support is required.
You must be 16 years of age and a school leaver to apply for an apprenticeship. However, there is no upper age limit to applying for apprenticeships.
There is no set time in the year that apprentices are recruited and they can enrol to the training provider as soon as they commence employment.
Apprenticeships can be applied for as soon as a position becomes available; adverts are usually open for two weeks after being advertised. We do not hold applications or CVs.
Apprenticeship positions will require 4 GCSE’s at Grade D/3 or above, including English or maths. Equivalent qualifications are also accepted.
Some apprenticeships will have some extra requirements and qualifications needed, so please check the Person Specification on the vacancy when applying.
We will not be able to accept applications from individuals who have already obtained a higher level qualification in a similar field to the apprenticeship they will be completing.
Depending on the subject of the apprenticeship, attending college workshops are usually mandatory. Where possible, most of these will be held at the JPUH once a month, however it might be necessary to attend your training provider’s campus.
You will be assigned an assessor by the training provider who will support you in the completion of your portfolio. For most apprenticeships, the college assessor will visit the apprentice’s workplace every 4-6 weeks.
All apprenticeships are full time; working 37.5 hours a week. The times and days will vary according to the needs of the service. There will be a pay enhancement if you are contracted to work weekends.
Please contact the Apprenticeship Team via email; JPUH-Apprenticeships@jpaget.nhs.uk
