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Early Careers & Apprenticeship ManagerArriva Group · 2 Locations
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Arriva Group

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Early Careers & Apprenticeship Manager

🗓️ Posted 2026-10-05 2 Locations Hybrid Human Resources Recruitment
💰 Salary Not shared 📊 Market 3,333 GBP–4,583 GBP/mo

About the Company

Europe-wide passenger transport company Arriva is the leading passenger transport operator in Europe, employing around 36,200 people and delivering 1.5 billion passenger journeys each year, with businesses across 11 European countries. Our services include local buses (scheduled and demand-responsive); inter-urban commuter coaches; local, regional and national train services; waterbuses, bicycles and school transport. We operate passenger transport services in Czech Republic; Croatia; Hungary; Italy; Netherlands; Poland; Slovakia; Slovenia, Spain and the UK. We also have a rolling stock leasing company in Romania. Ground Passenger Transportation Specialties: Public Transport, Bus, Rail, Transport leader, Pan-European public transport, Customer first, Sustainable transport solutions, Passenger Transport, Mobility Solutions, Ground Passenger Transport

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Early Careers & Apprenticeship Manager to lead the development, delivery and performance of early careers programmes across Arriva UK Bus operations, with apprenticeships forming the core focus of the role. This position will play a critical role in building sustainable talent pipelines and developing the future skills and capability required to support the business's operational, engineering and corporate priorities. Working closely with business leaders, operational management teams, HR, Talent Acquisition and external partners, you will ensure early careers programmes are aligned to workforce planning requirements, succession pipelines and critical capability needs. The role is accountable for the end-to-end management of apprenticeship programmes, alongside the development and coordination of broader early careers initiatives including graduate programmes, internships, work experience, traineeships and other emerging talent pathways. You will maximise apprenticeship levy investment while creating an engaging and effective early careers offering that attracts, develops and retains future talent across the business.

Responsibilities

  • ● Develop and deliver the Operations Early Careers strategy, ensuring programmes support current and future workforce requirements.
  • ● Lead the design and implementation of apprenticeship pathways across operational, engineering and business support functions.
  • ● Develop and coordinate broader early careers initiatives, including graduate, undergraduate, internship, placement and work experience programmes.
  • ● Create and maintain an early careers demand plan aligned to workforce planning objectives, business priorities and future capability requirements.
  • ● Partner with business leaders to identify skills gaps and develop talent solutions that support operational performance and succession planning.
  • ● Promote Arriva as an employer of choice for emerging talent through targeted attraction and engagement initiatives.
  • ● Manage the end-to-end apprenticeship lifecycle including attraction, recruitment, onboarding, learner support, programme monitoring, completion and progression.
  • ● Ensure apprenticeship programmes deliver high-quality learner experiences and strong business outcomes.
  • ● Monitor apprentice engagement, achievement, completion and progression rates, implementing interventions where required.
  • ● Coach and support line managers, mentors and stakeholders to maximise apprentice success and long-term career development.
  • ● Ensure apprenticeship programmes comply with funding regulations, apprenticeship standards, quality requirements and internal governance processes.
  • ● Manage apprenticeship levy investment effectively, maximising utilisation and return on investment.
  • ● Partner with Talent Acquisition teams to attract, recruit and onboard high-potential early careers talent.
  • ● Build relationships with schools, colleges, universities, training providers and industry bodies to strengthen talent pipelines.
  • ● Develop initiatives that increase awareness of careers within Arriva and support social mobility, diversity and inclusion objectives.
  • ● Support events, careers fairs and outreach activities to enhance Arriva's employer brand within key talent markets.
  • ● Manage training provider and supplier relationships, ensuring high standards of delivery and learner outcomes.
  • ● Define and track programme KPIs across apprenticeships and early careers programmes, reporting on performance, diversity, retention, completion and business impact.