About the job

Job summary

We have an exciting opportunity for Level 2 Customer Service Apprentices within our Customer Support Centres in Durham and Swansea. We are looking for enthusiastic and motivated individuals who are committed to learning and developing.

This is your chance to secure a Customer Service apprenticeship unlike any other. Our people are at the heart of everything we do and throughout this apprenticeship we will support you with your development.

You will get all the benefits of an apprenticeship - paid work experience, valuable skills, and a recognised qualification. But that’s not all, you will also have the chance to help shape our future.

HM Land Registry (HMLR) plays a vitally important role in the property market, maintaining a land register of more than 26 million land and property titles in England and Wales, estimated to be worth around £8 trillion. We have a proud history and for more than 160 years we have protected property ownership and underpinned the modern economy. 

Job description

Throughout your apprenticeship you will undertake a Level 2 Standard in Customer Service and will have the opportunity to earn and learn, whilst gaining valuable skills and experience to set you up for the rest of your career. 

Alongside your apprenticeship you will be undertaking the role of Customer Support Officer. This role requires you to be the first point of contact to deal with a range of land registration enquiries from both business and citizen customers arriving through varying channels.

As part of this role, you will be responsible for providing prompt, professional and accurate information to customers. This includes casework processing to the required service level agreement standards and timescales. We offer a full and comprehensive training and development programme for this role with on-going call coaching and support to maintain technical casework skills. 

On successful completion of your Level 2 apprenticeship and subject to satisfactory performance and attendance, you will be offered a permanent contract which will lead onto studying for a Level 3 Customer Service Specialist apprenticeship.

The role is to start October 2024.

Number of posts: 5 in Durham and 5 in Swansea. 

For more details regarding the Level 2 Customer Service Practitioner apprenticeship, please see the following link:

Customer service practitioner / Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education

For the Level 3 Customer Service Specialist apprenticeship, please see the following:

Customer service specialist / Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education

Successful candidates in Wales who meet the eligibility criteria for an apprenticeship will be funded by HMLR to undertake an English standard apprenticeship. 

There will be an opportunity to attend an Open Evening on Tuesday 26 March 2024 at the Durham and Swansea office (5.30pm for meet and greet with a 6pm start) to learn more about working at HMLR and the apprenticeships we are offering.

To register your interest, please email your name, contact number and number of attendees to Victoria.Golightly@landregistry.gov.uk (Durham) or Emma.Chattin@landregistry.gov.uk (Swansea). You are most welcome to bring along a parent or friend. If you have any reasonable adjustments, please let us know.

For more information about working at HMLR, please see the following link: https://www.civil-service-careers.gov.uk/departments/working-for-hm-land-registry/

Person specification

To be successful in this apprenticeship, ideally you will need to have Maths and English GCSE’s at grade 4 or grade C and above (or equivalent). If not, you will be required to complete and achieve level 2 functional skills as part of your apprenticeship.

You are keen to develop your career, have an enthusiasm for learning and understand the commitment required to complete an apprenticeship. You take ownership of the work you do and the results you achieve.

You have good organisation skills and can prioritise your own workload and deliver tasks, whilst working to deadlines and using different sources of information. You have good attention to detail and the ability to make sound judgement/decisions based on available evidence.

You also have experience working as part of a team to achieve a common goal, along with effective verbal and written communication skills with a reasonable level of fluency in English. In addition, you will be a competent user of computer software packages including knowledge of MS Office and email.

This apprenticeship is office based and will be undertaken on-site in the HMLR office that you have applied for. You will be expected to work full time in the office for the duration of your apprenticeship. There may be occasions, on completion of your HMLR role training, where you can undertake some of your apprenticeship work at home, if this is agreed with your line manager.

Our Customer Support Centre is open from 8.00am until 5.00pm Monday to Friday, however, sometimes calls need answering until 18:00pm. Customer Support Centre staff are on flexible working patterns and all team members are expected to play their part in ensuring that there is sufficient cover available to take the forecasted volume of calls throughout the opening hours. 

​This position is classed as a "public-facing" role. In November 2016 the government published a code of practice on the English language requirements for public sector workers.

English language requirements for public sector workers code of practice

Where an individual taking up the responsibility will be based in Swansea Office, the ability to speak Welsh is desirable.

Please see the attached candidate pack for further information.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £24,564, HM Land Registry contributes £6,632 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Ability and Experience.

To apply you will need to complete the short application form and take the online Civil Service Customer Service Skills Test as soon as possible. Ideally you should take the test before midday on Monday 8 April 2024 to allow for the next stage of the application process. ​

Please complete the online application form to include your qualifications and experience. The personal statement section (in no more than 750 words) must be used to provide details of how you meet the essential experience criteria listed below:

• Able to demonstrate a good understanding of what makes effective customer service.
• Good organisational skills including the ability to prioritise, deliver tasks and work to deadlines.
• Enthusiasm for learning and a strong commitment to your career and personal development.

 (Note: If you do not have a work-based examples then an example from school/college/clubs is fine).

In the event of a high number of applications, we reserve the right to pre-sift on the leading criteria:

• Able to demonstrate a good understanding of what makes effective customer service.

Please review your application form before clicking ‘submit’ – once you have submitted, you will not be able to amend your application. Ensure your application form is received by the closing date for receipt of applications – this is 11:55pm on the advertised date.

The sift will take place shortly after the closing date. The final stage will consist of an interview and short exercise which will be held face to face in the Durham or Swansea office week commencing Monday 1 July 2024. 

The blended interview will assess the essential experience and behaviours listed in the candidate pack, as well as the strengths associated with the role. We want to hear your first, unrehearsed, natural response to the strength questions, and so we don’t advertise which strengths are being tested. The best way to prepare for strengths questions is to reflect on what you identify as your own personal strengths, and your preferred ways of working.

Candidates may refer to notes within their interview, but they should be used as a prompt only.

HMLR is accredited to the Disability Confidence Scheme, which denotes organisations which have a positive attitude towards disabled people. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum essential criteria at the shortlisting stage are guaranteed an invitation to interview.

If any candidate requires the panel to consider a reasonable adjustment or there is anything else, they would like the panel to take into consideration they are asked to notify us of this at application stage where possible or during the process as soon as it becomes a requirement.

Please note, the Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expect all candidates to abide by these principles. Please ensure all examples provided throughout the entire recruitment process are of your own experience. HM Land Registry take any incidences of cheating very seriously. Any detected instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating, including the use of artificial intelligence, will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant applications will be withdrawn from the process.

If you would like further information about the use of your personal data, please click on the link below:

 Job Applicant Personal Information

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.