Summary The successful candidate will work alongside the Council’s small office-based team, to provide administrative, customer service and clerk support. Wage £9,815 for your first year, then could increase depending on your age National Minimum Wage rate for apprentices Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab) Training course Customer service practitioner (level 2) Hours To be discussed at interview. 25 hours a week Start date Thursday 8 January 2026 Duration 1 year 3 months Positions available 1 Work Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience. What you'll do at work Joining a small professional team, the post holder will work alongside the Clerk, Asst. Clerk and Estates Supervisor in the delivery of office based support to the Council; servicing committees; attending to general enquiries from members of the public and supporting the Mayor with their busy appointments dairy. The post holder will report to the Asst. Clerk on a day-to-day basis under the overall responsibility of the Clerk. Duties involve liaising with councillors, council contacts and members of the public and requires good communication skills (both written and verbal) and the ability to deal with situations in a confidential, impartial and diplomatic manner. Key responsibilities: To act as first point of contact to all visitors to the Guildhall To provide the Clerk, Assistant Clerk and Estates Supervisor with administrative support in all aspects of the Council’s functions To work with the Mayor of the day in relation to their appointments diary To open and distribute incoming mail To maintain the Petty Cash imprest system. Filing Website updates Day to Day Contact Working closely with the Clerk, Assistant Clerk and Estates Supervisor; and on occasion with the Council’s Honorary Archivists Liaising and communicating with Council members (councillors) including the Town Mayor Where you'll work THE GUILD HALL CHURCH ST HARWICH ESSEX CO12 3DS Training Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills. Training provider TENDRING DISTRICT COUNCIL Training course Customer service practitioner (level 2) Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab) What you'll learn Course contents Use a range of questioning skills, including listening and responding in a way that builds rapport, determines customer needs and expectations and achieves positive engagement and delivery. Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication skills, along with summarising language during face-to-face communications; and/or Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate communication skills, along with reinforcement techniques (to confirm understanding) during non-facing customer interactions. Depending on your job role and work environment: Use an appropriate ‘tone of voice’ in all communications, including written and digital, that reflect the organisation’s brand. Provide clear explanations and offer options in order to help customers make choices that are mutually beneficial to both the customer and your organisation. Be able to organise yourself, prioritise your own workload/activity and work to meet deadlines. Demonstrate patience and calmness. Show you understand the customer’s point of view. Use appropriate sign-posting or resolution to meet your customers needs and manage expectations. Maintain informative communication during service recovery. Training schedule Customer Service Practitioner Apprenticeship Standard Level 2: Providing customer service products and services for businesses and other organisations including face-to-face, telephone, digital and written contact and communications The Customer Service Practitioner Apprenticeship Standard at Level 2 combines the knowledge, skills and behaviours required of the standard and includes functional skills in maths and English Delivery will be in the workplace over the period of the apprenticeship. with an assessor or coach through a combination of assessing, coaching, training and mentoring The minimum duration on the apprenticeship is 12 months, with an additional 3 months for an externally assessed end point assessment A total of 15 months plus functional skills if required Prior learning and experience will also be taken into consideration Further information on the standard can be viewed here - https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/customer-service-practitioner-v1-1 More training information In addition to the apprenticeship training, the council will offer various training opportunities relevant to the role and based on the needs of the postholder The council is dedicated to the professional development of its employees and will facilitate further training where practical Requirements Essential qualifications GCSE in: English (grade 4) Maths (grade 4) Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know. Skills Communication skills IT skills Attention to detail Organisation skills Customer care skills Problem solving skills Administrative skills Team working Initiative Non judgemental Patience Other requirements The Guildhall in Harwich is where the main council offices are located and the post holder will be based here for 25 hours p/wk. There may be a requirement, on occasion, to undertake site visits at allotments of other premises owned/managed by the council. The vacancy is office based and work duties will be sufficiently varied to avoid unreasonably long periods of computer working. There will be a requirement, on occasion, for the post holder to attend evening meetings or civic events held outside of normal working hours. About this employer Harwich Town Council is a parish council, within the first tier of local government. Working with, but independently of, the district and county councils, Harwich Town Council assists in the delivery/retention of services to some 18000 residents across the 5 wards of Harwich and Dovercourt. The Council has 16 councillors (inc Town Mayor), 3 permanent staff members and 3 seasonal Leisure Attendants; and has a precept of £208k in 2020/21. The Council owns the Grade I Listed Guildhall in Harwich, where the offices are located, and also owns properties to the rear of the former Magistrates Court in Main Road, leased to local community groups. The Council also operates 6 allotment sites and manages the seafront Putting Greens and Skateboard Park, in Wick Lane. The Guildhall is home to the town’s archives, which date back many hundreds of years, and are well looked-after by our 2 experienced Honorary Archivists. After this apprenticeship Upon successful completion of the apprenticeship, the post holder will be sufficiently experienced and have gained a wide range of transferable skills, to seek employment in many administrative roles Experience of local government will be particularly attractive to prospective employers, opening up a range of opportunities including those in other local authorities (Councils) or education authorities (Schools/colleges) A career as a Town Clerk could be achieved with additional study/qualification A basic understanding of office procedures, as well as enhanced communication, organisational and diplomacy skills, will provide a great foundation for a more industry-specific career, such as in legal or medical administration The apprenticeship will provide experience with Event Management and Customer Support which could lead to opportunities in the events industry Ask a question The contact for this apprenticeship is: TENDRING DISTRICT COUNCIL Ms Lucy Ballard info@harwichtowncouncil.co.uk 01255 507211 The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000344286.