HR Apprentice (Employee Relations / Resourcing) x2

Joining us, you get to work for not just one high performing London Borough, but two.

Sutton and Kingston councils have a Shared Human Resources and Organisational Development Service serving both authorities. Some teams and some roles are more focussed on one Council than the other, but the majority are shared across the two meaning you get in built opportunities to learn from a wider pool of activities and two different political bodies.

We work flexibly in both Sutton and Kingston offices, and support working at home or flexible working patterns that enable you to tailor your working life to everything else in your life. We provide the equipment and tools to enable you to work flexibly, and in return ask you to use that flexibility to be creative and ambitious in the services we deliver.

There are some really exciting things happening in both Sutton and Kingston. We are developing the London Cancer Hub, a world leading cancer research and treatment hub that will bring together professionals from across different sectors to identify and test new treatments and therapies. We are undertaking the largest housing regeneration programme ever delivered in Kingston, building new energy efficient housing that will transform some of our oldest Council owned housing. Both boroughs have publicly committed to doing what they can to tackle the climate emergency and are investing in new technologies and societal change that will help bring carbon emissions down and improve our climate impact.

Sutton is a well connected attractive part of London that has a reputation for excellent schools, green and leafy open spaces, and a history that drives a thriving heritage and culture offer through our museums and libraries. The Council is controlled by a long established Liberal Democrat Administration and has high ambitions set out in its corporate plan “Ambitious for Sutton”, that will ensure Sutton remains a great place to live, work and raise a family. The Council plays a leading role in a number of local partnerships and places great emphasis on engaging effectively with its residents, listening to local voices and making their message heard across London Government. 

Kingston is a beautiful Royal borough with a historic setting on the banks of the Thames with excellent schools and a bustling retail centre, all surrounded by open green spaces such as Richmond Park and Bushey Park, former recreation grounds for Tudor kings and queens. The Council is controlled by a Liberal Democrat Administration and has a corporate plan “Making Kingston Better Together” that sets out a vision to be a vibrant, diverse and inclusive borough where residents are active, empowered, engaged and able to remain independent and resilient. The Council engages with residents through a number of forums and events through the year, and like Sutton plays a leading role in developing the South West Region of London.

We have two new and exciting apprenticeship opportunities within our Human Resources (HR) and Organisational Development (OD) Shared service. In these roles, you'll get the opportunity to learn from our experienced team, gain valuable experience and work towards achieving a Level 3 or Level 5 CIPD accredited qualification in HR (candidates will be appointed dependent on their experience in HR to date). 

The first apprenticeship opportunity sits within our Employee Relations Team, the role involves advising managers and staff on HR legislation and policy, employment law, supporting managing change and restructures.

In this role you'll also:

• Support the Employee Relations Team to promote an emphasis on enabling managers (and all employees) through the streamlining of processes; creation of toolkits and workflows; and provision of guidance, training and learning, maximising technology as appropriate to best equip managers and all staff to deliver their responsibilities and support high performance.
• Provide day to day administration support.
• Have the opportunity to shadow Employee Relations Specialists and other colleagues on a range of projects. 
• Be able to get involved in new ways of working especially with regards to digital enhancements for the HR & OD service specifically to do with Employee Relations activities.

The second apprenticeship opportunity sits within our Resourcing team, in which you will work on a variety of projects designed to ensure we can recruit staff quickly whilst ensuring a positive candidate experience throughout. 

In this role you'll:

• Liaise with our hiring managers and job applicants to provide a good recruitment experience, ensuring tasks are completed in a timely manner, with due regard for customer service. 
• Support the HR team with administrative tasks including scheduling and preparing resourcing documentation, updating our applicant tracking (recruitment) system, and carrying out pre-employment checks for those offered employment with the Councils. 
• Manage projects, work in a team, and communicate with various partners effectively. 
• Work with the HR & OD Heads of Service and shadow other colleagues to support workforce projects.
• Be able to get involved in new ways of working especially with regards to digital enhancements for the HR & OD service specifically to do with Resourcing activities.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a progressive HR and OD Shared Service that focuses on our customers’ needs across Kingston Council, Sutton Council, and our partner organisations. We are building a strategically focused OD service that is responsive to our customer needs and enables them to provide the services needed for the communities we work with.

We’re extremely proud of our apprenticeship scheme and the achievements of our apprentices, many of whom have secured permanent employment with the Council and continue to excel in their careers.

 In order to qualify for apprenticeship funding and be considered for these posts you must meet the following criteria:

• Hold a GCSE level C or 9-4/equivalent in Maths and English and be able to present original qualification certificates.
• Only apply for an apprenticeship unrelated to any qualifications you already hold at the same or higher level than the apprenticeship you wish to apply for. The apprenticeship being applied for must be unrelated in subject and content from the qualification already held.
• Not be enrolled on another funded apprenticeship or another funded further education or higher education programme at the time you start your new apprenticeship.
• Have the right to work and study in England and be one of the following:

1. A citizen of a country within the European Economic Area (EEA) or have the right to abode in the UK and have been resident in the EEA for at least the previous three years on the first day of your apprenticeship.
2. 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.

You must also be able to demonstrate the following key points and should do so in your supporting statement as part of your online application:

• An interest in working in the public sector for a local authority. 
• An interest in working in completing an apprenticeship in Human Resources.
• An interest in human resources and organisational development. 
• Have an understanding of equal opportunities and diversity in employment and service delivery.  
• Good organisation skills and the ability to work to deadlines, prioritise tasks and work independently and as part of a team.  
• Enthusiasm and a drive to move things forward. 

As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we’re committed to helping you fulfil your potential and will offer you a supportive, friendly and collaborative environment to grow and develop your career and skills. We’re constantly striving to improve our ways of working so putting your ideas across however big or small; will be fully encouraged and supported by your colleagues and our dynamic and experienced management team.

In addition we offer a modern and flexible working environment for our staff supported by our IT infrastructure, Google Chromebooks and Google Apps, which have acted as a key enabler for collaborative and streamlined working. The COVID-19 pandemic has required us to be even more flexible in how we work and manage staff workloads, ensuring they have the correct equipment and resources to be able to maximise their talents and looking after their wellbeing.

Employees have access to a wide range of benefits, some of which include:

• Generous annual leave entitlement plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply)
• Three volunteering days per year
• Flexible and agile working arrangements
• Comprehensive learning and development programme
• Discounts on a range of local shops, restaurants, gyms and leisure centres
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
• Zip car scheme
• Free eye tests and contribution towards glasses
• Confidential wellbeing and counselling support
• Subsidised gym membership

We pride ourselves on being a diverse, tolerant and welcoming Borough and we aim to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve. We are respectful of difference and realise the positive value of diversity in our workforce. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds and particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and disabled candidates as these groups are currently under-represented in our workforce.

We are proud to be recognised as a Disability Confident employer, and are committed to thinking differently about disability and taking action to improve how we recruit, retain and develop disabled people. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role.   

We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, staff engagement forums, and inclusive staff networks who help drive our diversity agenda.

We are an accredited London Living Wage Employer and this means that everyone working at the Royal Borough of Kingston, regardless of whether they are permanent employees or third-party contractors and suppliers receive the London Living Wage. The real Living Wage is higher than the government’s minimum, or National Living Wage, and is an independently calculated hourly rate of pay that is based on the actual cost of living.

The UK has introduced a new points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the GOV.UK website for right to work guidance.