Job Description

Job details

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Responsible to


Head of Discipline of Built Environment


Location


Markeaton Street, Derby Campus


Closing date


Monday 4 August 2025


Salary


31,814 to 35,750 per annum (for exceptional performers, there is scope for further progression up to 41,113 per annum)


Job grade


ATOS 6


Reference


0092-25


Contract type


Permanent


Post type


Full-time


Adaptive working type


Hybrid

This role will be based on site, primarily in the named location with the opportunity to work remotely available in line with our Adaptive Working Framework.



About the University
We have one simple promise - to make a positive impact. Through our ground-breaking research, teaching excellence and commitment to sustainable living, we are changing lives for the better.



The University of Derby is a modern university with a modern outlook. Everything we do is driven by delivering excellence and opportunities for our students, our staff and our region.



We have some of the best university facilities in the UK and achieve outstanding results for our teaching and research and have been awarded Gold in the prestigious Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023 - making it one of the top universities in the country recognised for its outstanding student experience and student outcomes.



Financially strong and seriously ambitious we offer our employees an inclusive culture that centres itself around staff wellbeing, where you can be confident you will receive all the help and encouragement you need to build a rewarding career with lots of opportunities to enhance your skills.


About the College/Department
Here at University of Derby, the College of Science and Engineering is the home of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths: the STEM skills that are essential to the UK's Industrial Strategy. From digitisation to decarbonisation, we have an important role to play in shaping the future. And by researching or collaborating with us, you can too.



Engineering at Derby has a bold vision to deliver an outstanding learning experience to our students, further develop and expand our research capacity and increase our industry engagement in the region and beyond to fulfil targets for Research Excellence Framework (REF) and Knowledge Excellence Framework (KEF) as well as provide the best opportunities to our graduates. The discipline area is located in the University's STEM annex in Markeaton Street, where staff offices and lab facilities are co-located. Key investments in the last few years include dedicated intelligent instrumentation and smart sensor technologies, robotics, renewable energy, power engineering and advanced materials and manufacturing. The discipline area is actively engaged in knowledge exchange projects and has an active applied research agenda.


About the role
The University of Derby has been at the forefront of vocational and work-based learning for over 10 years delivering industry responsive courses and higher-level skills to local and national businesses and their employees. Building on this success and in light of the creation of new degree Apprenticeship Standards the University has developed and introduced a number of new degree higher Apprenticeships across a range of sectors.



As Degree Apprenticeship Workplace Reviewer, you will work with the programme team to lead on facilitating reviews between apprentices, employers and liaising with relevant academic staff. Your engagement with employers and their apprentices is foremost to ensuring our existing and future apprenticeship programmes provide an excellent learning experience, meeting employers and apprentice expectations, in line with the IFA and ESFA governance requirements for apprenticeship provision.



You will work collaboratively with both academic staff and apprenticeship account managers to ensure systems and process are adhered to and that both quality and compliance is maintained to the highest standard in line with service level agreements. You will organise visits with external clients, apprentices and internal staff to ensure the implementation of quality reviews and assessment of evidence for audit using an e-portfolio. You will act as a personal professional academic tutor for learners and will need to engage actively on working with employers to support learners who have disclosed a need for additional support.


About You
The ideal candidate should have a strong background in civil engineering, with an honours degree (or equivalent qualification), or equivalent professional experience. You will possess substantial experience in various engineering sectors such as transport, structural, site surveying, geotechnics, and fluid engineering. Additionally, you will have previous management or supervisory experience and be knowledgeable about current degree and apprenticeship programmes, including funding, quality, and compliance processes. Effective communication skills, both verbal and written, are essential, along with the ability to motivate and mobilise individuals.



The role requires you to lead reviews between apprentices, employers, and academic staff, ensuring quality and compliance with apprenticeship standards. Therefore you will organise visits, provide pastoral care, and support learners with additional needs. You must be highly organised, self-motivated, and able to work independently, with a flexible approach to work, including travel to various employer premises in the UK and occasional evening and weekend working. Commitment to professional development and first-class customer service is crucial for this role.


Principal accountabilities
Lead on liaising with apprentices, external clients and internal academic operations teams to ensure that communication between all parties is recorded in the review process, ensuring the process is managed and completed efficiently and effectively and in line with our service level agreements.

Accountable for managing visits with employers to carry out health and safety checks, assessment of evidence, tripartite reviews etc. Support the employers to actively participate in the review process offering mentoring support to young learners and small organisations, with a focus on young apprentices as well as those who have declared the need for additional support.

Act as a personal professional academic tutor, supporting and mentoring students as appropriate.

Provide pastoral care to students, referring when necessary to services that provide further support.

Work with the Apprenticeship Hub and Heads of School to facilitate duties that support the achievement of outstanding communication to employers and the learner and client experience.

Provide expert operational advice to Apprenticeship Hub team to ensure duties that support the achievement of Funding Compliance, whilst enhancing the learner and client experience.

Take a lead role to ensure that appropriate records of reviews are kept and stored securely in accordance with University and external bodies' audit requirements.

Work collaboratively with the Apprenticeship Hub team alongside academic staff to support learner engagement and update the employer either face to face or via our e-portfolio system.

Lead responsibility to work with employers and external professional bodies to ensure that there is a process by which suitable evidence is available on the professional body's career development portal to enable the student to progress and apply for the End Point Assessment (EPA).

Take a lead on collating the Employer and Apprentice review comments to inform programme committees and the University continual monitoring process for quality enhancement.

Lead on producing monthly reports to show compliance, retention and success against given targets.

Ensure that the Intent, Implementation and Impact of the apprenticeship programme is explored in each review and that academic teams are aware of any concerns by the apprentice and/or employer.

Ensure that the apprentice is building a complete portfolio of experience in order to attempt their End Point Assessment with apprenticeship guidelines.

Work with the academic team and End Point Assessment Organisations (EPAOs) to ensure that the apprentice is prepared for their EPA within the apprenticeship guidelines.

Build successful working relationships with key stakeholders across the University, relevant colleagues across the sector and external agencies to ensure expectations are effectively managed.

Contribute to the work of the College team and Apprenticeship Hub team (where appropriate), taking on such duties and responsibilities as delegated by the line manager.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

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Qualifications

Honours degree in Civil Engineering (or equivalent qualification), or equivalent professional experience
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Experience

Relevant work experience in the engineering sector related to the apprenticeship standard in the UK Demonstrable experience of working in the engineering sector to have obtained a broad skills base in areas such as transport engineering, structural engineering, site surveying, geomatics and fluid engineering Management or supervisory experience / leading staff teams Knowledge and experience of the current degree and apprenticeship programmes above Level 4 and associated funding quality and compliance processes and systems Experience of working with employers in their workplace
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Skills, knowledge and abilities

A working knowledge of current and emerging apprenticeship standards, EPA and the Apprenticeship Levy Numerically and financially literate with a sharp eye for detail Able to demonstrate a commitment to equality and diversity Commitment to first class customer service and achieving high quality outputs and outcomes Advanced organisational ability, excellent planning and prioritising capabilities An achiever who owns their own part in the process of delivering a high-quality apprenticeship service by going the extra mile in their area of responsibility Highly self-motivated with the confidence to work independently and willingness to take on new responsibilities Able to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing with people at all levels with the ability to gain the confidence, respect and co-operation of senior figures both within the organisation and externally Able to motivate and mobilise individuals both academics and students Highly organised and efficient
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Business requirements

Able to take a flexible approach to work Willingness and flexibility to travel and work between University and external sites in a cost effective and timely manner Some evening and occasional weekend working Attendance at Open Days, Graduation events etc. A commitment to own professional development

Desirable Criteria

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Qualifications

An MSc or MEng in civil engineering or equivalent Professionally qualified to IEng or CEng with a suitable engineering professional institution
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Experience, Skills, knowledge and abilities

Experience of working with higher apprentices and/or in the education sector Benefits
Generous annual leave entitlement of 38 days inclusive of bank holidays and concessionary days (pro rata) Local Government Pension Scheme Suite of holistic wellbeing benefits and support including family-friendly policies, generous sick pay provision and comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme Access to a variety of staff discounts at high street retailers Discounted onsite gym Cycle to Work scheme A flexible working environment A commitment to personal and professional development

Find out more about rewards and benefitsFind out more about rewards and benefits


Key contact
For further information and informal enquiries regarding the role, please contact Dr Simon Wood, Programme Leader for the Civil Engineering Apprenticeship via s.wood@derby.ac.uk


For enquiries regarding your application and for sponsorship eligibility, please contact the recruitment team via recruitment@derby.ac.uk.


Important information#

Visa Sponsorship Eligibility

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers under the Skilled Worker route for this role; however, applications are welcome from candidates who are able to demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.



Please visit Applying from Overseas for more information.




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Equity, diversity and inclusion

The University of Derby is committed to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion, regardless of age, disability, trans status, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief (or none), sex and sexual orientation.



We are Disability Confident Employers, demonstrating our commitment to disability inclusion, and invite applicants to highlight adjustments they may require to ensure equitable participation in our recruitment processes.



Further, we are committed to ensuring an environment which is trans and non-binary-inclusive for all our staff, students, partners, and visitors, and continuously review our policies, guidance and training.



When applying to join the University, you can choose your preferred title, including the gender-neutral title 'Mx'. We also ask our candidates if they would like to share their preferred pronouns. This is voluntary but demonstrates our commitment to inclusivity for trans and non-binary candidates. Once employed, you can add pronouns and preferred names onto our system.



The University of Derby undertakes anonymised shortlisting during the staff recruitment process. This means that, when shortlisting, panel members will not be able to see an applicant's name and will see an applicant number instead. This demonstrates the practical steps we are taking to remove barriers to recruitment by minimising the possible impact of our unconscious bias.



However you identify, we actively celebrate the knowledge, experience and talents each person brings. Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds; therefore we are particularly interested to hear from applicants who will help our leaders and teams be more reflective of our student population.



For more information on equity, diversity and inclusion at the University of Derby, please visit our website.





A university that celebrates you

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Environmental Sustainability

At the University of Derby, we are passionate about embedding sustainability into everything that we do. We aim to bring environmental sustainability into all aspects of the University, including teaching, research and operational activities. In line with the University's strategic framework, we expect all our staff to embed sustainability into their working practices and support the University's objective to reach net zero carbon by 2050.





Environment and sustainability


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