Career Development Coach

Description:

Aaron Services, part of The Sureserve Group are a market leading heating and hot water specialist with 35 years of successful delivery and a growing client base.

Aaron Services is committed  working with a range of training providers to support new industry entrants, and has been doing so successfully for more than twenty years within the domestic plumbing & heating sector.

Due to sustained growth of the business, and our commitment to building a workforce for the future, we are recruiting for a Career Development Coach to support and guide our expanding team of progressing learners as well work with the Career Transition Partnership; the MoD’s provider of Armed Forces Resettlement Training and local schools and colleges to expand on our delivery of training pathways including apprenticeships, work shadow and placement opportunities across the business.

Overview of Role

We are seeking a dynamic Career Development Coach to support our employees in their professional growth within the company. The successful candidate will exhibit exceptional leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills to help our learning team reach their full potential. This role will report directly to the Human Resources Manager and collaborate with various departments to implement effective career development programs.

The postholder will, in conjunction with the Senior Operations team agree an annual intake programme and provide support for this throughout the selection process, attending Career & Apprentice events across the business on behalf of Aaron Services.

The postholder will plan and conduct progress reviews to monitor and track learner progress and disseminate information, advice, and guidance. The postholder will be responsible for completing all required paperwork and updating records to show the progress made by the apprentice in line with apprenticeship funding regulations.

The postholder will be responsible for undertaking progress reviews with our learners and their employer mentors to support the apprentice’s successful progression on the apprenticeship in line with the Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours (KSBs) of the apprenticeship standard. They will liaise with mentors, and managers to support the apprentice’s learning needs in the workplace, and work with our training providers to develop the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours apprentices will need to successfully complete their apprenticeship.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

Resourcing:

Support the senior operations team to develop and coordinate the delivery of an annual plan for the sourcing of work placements, and other learners including the apprentices aligned to business needs including relevant workforce strategies and plans.

Support the operations team in all aspects of the recruitment and selection of Apprentices, liaising with candidates, and learning centres to ensure efficient and seamless enrolment.

Develop and manage a two-way relationship with training providers including the Career Transition Partnership, Local apprentice advisers, as well as local schools, & colleges, attending career days with local schools, & colleges across the business reach to actively promote the Work Placements & Apprenticeships schemes,

Support:

Undertake regular progress reviews with all learners and their line manager / mentor, ensuring reviews are completed in line with the agreed schedule and are documented accurately. Meetings will mostly take place from one of our offices.

Set SMART targets for apprentices in each progress review, in line with the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours (KSBs) of the relevant apprenticeship standard and monitor achievement of the agreed targets.

Ensure the Apprenticeship levy funding is maximised and managed through the Digital Apprenticeship Service account.

Monitor apprentice progress against the Knowledge, Skills, and Behaviours (KSBs) of the relevant apprenticeship standard and provide feedback to both the apprentice and their employer mentor, highlighting any risks to progression to the Operations Team.

Develop an understanding of Gateway and End Point Assessment requirements for each apprenticeship standard to be able to signpost apprentices and employers to Gateway and End Point Assessment preparation workshops and resources. Support and enhance the apprentice and employer experience through effective skills coaching and support through the completion of the End Point Assessment.

Support employer mentors to understand their responsibilities relating to on and Off-the-Job Training required by the apprentice, influencing employers to support apprentices with relevant work experience, and ensure positive outcomes for apprenticeships as required.

Support apprentices and employers to identify and record eligible and appropriate Off-the-Job Training in line with funding regulations and Ofsted’s requirements. Review and approve the Off-the-Job training logs each month for every apprentice within their caseload. Ensure the required Off-the-Job Training hours are achieved by each apprentice before the end of the apprenticeship.

Carry out reviews, annually and end-of-placement with supervisors/managers and learners.

Share updates on apprentice attendance with the apprentice and employer during tripartite reviews, in line with the agreed attendance monitoring process for apprentices.

Refer any compliance issues to the apprenticeships team so that they can be resolved in a timely manner.

Work with Sureserve Academy to co-ordinate events including the annual Academy Day, as well as Apprenticeship Week.

Have an awareness of concerns that may impact on Apprentices ability to engage with and/or complete work, and be able to raise these matters as required, and refer Apprentices on to the right support services where necessary.

Additional

Maintain accurate records of all learners and enquiries, placements, shadowing, & apprenticeships in line with GDPR processing, providing frequent updates to our management teams, bid team and clients as and when required.

Evaluate the delivery and impact of the learning pathways including our apprenticeship program to lead the development and coordination of action plans to address opportunities for improvement.

ABOUT YOU:

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE 

Essential

Experience relevant to the subject area and industry sector.

Experience of building and maintaining effective relationships with line managers.

Experience of coaching or mentoring.

Understanding of the sector subject area.

Proven ability to work with sensitive and possibly complex needs of others and help manage relationships to a successful outcome.

Proven ability to successfully manage and deliver outcome-based workload to time. 

Driving License

Desirable

Accreditation or membership of relevant professional body

Understanding of apprenticeship funding regulations and compliance requirements

Understanding of relevant apprenticeship standards

Successful experience of coordinating workplace reviews, or similar time critical workload e.g. delivering workplace reviews within set period, delivering project objectives within set period or similar outcome-based work.
APTITUDES, ABILITIES AND PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Essential

Fully committed to creating a stimulating learning and working environment which is supportive and fair, based on mutual respect and trust, and in which harassment and discrimination are neither tolerated nor accepted

Ability to work independently, managing own workload and priorities.

Ability to work under pressure to tight deadlines ensuring accuracy and compliance.

Ability to work as part of a wider cross-organisational team.

Ability to encourage commitment to learn in others.

A commitment to engaging in continuous professional development.

Strong negotiation skills

Proven written and oral communication skills

IT proficiency

Ability to establish good working relationships with colleagues, apprentices, and employers.

Empathetic approach when liaising with our learners, their line managers, and learning centres.

The confidence to exercise independent professional judgement when making decisions, having looked at a range of possible solutions.

Commitment to upholding Safeguarding requirements and supporting apprentices to understand the importance of British Values and the Prevent Agenda.
This role can be based out of our Stowmarket, or Boston Office with an element of hybrid working available.  Site visits across the business however will be expected on a weekly basis.

What We Offer:

Employee wellbeing programme, including occupational health support and telephone counselling.

29 Days annual Leave including Bank Holidays

Service level awarded annual leave.

Enhanced Maternity & Paternity Packages.

Dental/Healthcare cash plan.

Cycle to Work Scheme.

Electric Vehicle Leasing Scheme.

Gender & Equality Working Group.

Sureserve Academy: a platform for development and career progression.

Employee Voice Programme.

Social activities for all of our teams.

Sureserve Legends: celebrating the fantastic ways in which our employees live our values.
We are committed to developing talent at all levels, ensuring equality, diversity, and inclusion in the way we work and in the communities in which we operate. We ensure that every one of our people, clients, and customers has the opportunity and support to fulfil their professional and personal potential.

Apply today to join our remarkable team. If you have the skills and experience we're looking for, we'd love to hear from you!

Successful applicants will be required to provide evidence of their eligibility to work in the UK, and DBS checks will be conducted prior to employment