AddressAre you looking to kickstart your career in an award-winning organisation? Have you just left education, or looking for a change of career?
The Customer Service Apprenticeship is a minimum of 12months programme, which will combine work and education, allowing you to gain a formal qualification, as well as hands-on experience in the Contact Centre. During the programme you can expect to learn, develop, and grow with the support of your tutors, colleagues, and business mentors.
You can forget the traditional stereotypes of working in a Contact Centre, we are not about sales targets or cold calling! To our people this is 'more than just a job' - we are an ethical and values-based organisation, passionate about delivering outstanding services. We don’t agree with all work, no play and offer our employee some excellent benefits.
What you'll be doing:
- Make a difference to everyday lives by providing outstanding Customer Service.
- Providing business critical support services to large Government clients such as the Ministry of Justice and Defence, Home Office, and Department for Work and Pensions.
- Answering incoming calls and responding to emails, handling queries with integrity and ensuring information is logged accurately and efficiently.
- Continually learning and developing your knowledge and experience, working across different departments, and gaining exposure to different clients and systems.
What you should know:
- From day one you will be a core part of the Contact Centre team; you will complete the Level 2 Apprenticeship over the course of 12months minimum with a permanent position after successful completion.
- Working hours are 37 hours per week Monday-Friday, with shifts between the hours of 8am-6pm.
- We have roles available at both our Newport (NP10 8FZ) and Newcastle sites (NE12 8BU), with free onsite parking at both sites.
- We offer hybrid working with the flexibility to work from home some of the time. To support with training and induction you will be expected to attend your closest site in the initial stages.
- Dates for the diary: Closing date for applications is July 2024; Insight days at our offices will be held July 2024; Expected start date for the programme is October 2024.
What you’ll bring:
You don’t need any previous experience in Customer service or Contact centre environments to apply, this could be your first job or even a career change, but we do ask that you are:
- A confident communicator: working within Customer Service will involve speaking with our customers and colleagues daily. You'll be comfortable chatting both on the phone and in person, adjusting your approach based on your audience.
- Motivated: As an apprentice, you'll get a mix of classroom learning and hands-on experience. Be ready to learn new skills and gain knowledge, as every day will bring something different.
- An Excellent teammate: this is not a typical contact centre environment, we operate as a team who support each other. You should enjoy working with others, be willing to lend a hand and comfortable asking for help when needed.
- A Growth mindset: You’ll learn a lot as an apprentice in this environment. We'll provide you with all the tools to grow, in exchange, we're counting on you to dive into learning opportunities headfirst to drive your career forward.
- Logical: When speaking with customers you will encounter a variety of queries. You will need to absorb lots of information, show curiosity and ask the right questions so you can resolve each issue.
What’s in it for you:
- Starting salary £19,305, increasing to £21,116pa upon successful completion.
- 25 days annual leave plus the bank holidays, the option to buy/sell extra leave, plus paid day off for your birthday!
- Company pension contribution matched between 4-6%.
- Life Assurance (4x Salary).
- Health cash plan.
- 3% benefits fund on top, which you can spend either on more specific benefits (i.e. Health screenings, dental cover, gym membership etc.) or can simply take the cash equivalent as a salary top up (Subject to Tax/NI).
- There are opportunities to volunteer in the local community, up to 3 days paid volunteering per year (not deducted from holiday entitlement).
- Access to Employee Assistance Programme & Mental Health First Aiders.
- And so much more…
You will NOT be eligible for the apprenticeship if you have:
- Lots of experience in Customer service or an existing qualification in this subject.
- In full time education or receiving government funding for another qualification at the time this programme starts.
- Have completed a degree in any field (Wales only).
If you are interested in this role but not sure if your skills and experience are exactly what we’re looking for, please do apply, we’d love to hear from you!
Loved reading about this job and want to know more about us?
SSCL is the market leader in critical business support services for the UK public sector. Operating at size and scale since 2013, SSCL has delivered over £750 million of savings - providing more funds for front line public services. We transform services using digital solutions and innovative technology, developing platforms that enable flexibility to meet the changing needs of our Government, Defence and Police clients.
We employ around 3,000 people who sit at the heart of our business strategy. Their passion and connection to our values and our purpose is what sets us apart and puts SSCL in the Top 20 of GPTW large workplaces. ‘Living SSCL’ means we deliver social value within our services and work with our clients and community partners to support programmes such as education and employability initiatives across the UK.
