Apprentice Finance Support Officer
Sheffield City Council
South Yorkshire (S1 2HH)
Closes in 15 days (Monday 11 August 2025)
Posted on 18 July 2025
Contents
Summary
Thinking about your next step and not sure university is for you? Kickstart your career with a Level 3 Finance Apprenticeship at Sheffield City Council! What Does Our Finance Team Do? We manage the Council’s finances, ensuring public money is used wisely and effectively. You’ll be part of a team that supports vital services across the city.
- Wage
-
£19,180.80 a year
- Training course
- Assistant accountant (level 3)
- Hours
-
Monday - Friday. 37 hours a week. Shifts to be confirmed.
37 hours a week
- Start date
-
Monday 1 September 2025
- Duration
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1 year 3 months
- Positions available
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2
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
Strategic Contribution:
- Work towards understanding how the Council aims to improve and deliver excellent services
- Develop awareness of the Council’s goals and how resources are managed to support them
- Support the team in learning and using modern and efficient ways of working
- Contribute to the team’s work by completing tasks as directed and learning from others
- Take part in activities that help improve how the service works.
Political Awareness - Begin to develop an understanding of how the Council works with Elected Members
- Learn how political decisions can influence the work of the service
Customer Focus - Meet and greet visitors, including partners, stakeholders, and staff from other Council services, in a professional and friendly manner
- Provide basic information to customers and respond to simple queries, with support where needed
Resource Management:
- Support colleagues in achieving their goals by helping with tasks and learning how the team works.
- Learn how to purchase goods and services following Council procedures.
Support the Finance and Commercial Service by:
- Developing skills in finance support tasks such as investigations, reconciliations, journals, and helpdesk support
- Learning how to use and maintain information systems
- Assisting with purchasing goods and services
- Handling calls, messages, mail, and visitors in a professional manner
- Providing advice and information under supervision
- Taking part in service improvement activities
- Supporting the effectiveness of the service by completing tasks as directed
- Assisting with the day-to-day organisation of work, under guidance. The posts are in the Service Accounting team and the Financial Accounting teams within the Service
General Duties:
- Learn about your team’s Business Continuity Plan and follow the guidance if needed
- Support the planning and delivery of the team’s Service Plan by completing tasks as directed
- Take part in activities that help improve how the service works and look for ways to make things better
- Take responsibility for your own learning by using available resources to build your knowledge and skills in your area of work
Follow all Council policies and procedures, including those related to:
- Health and safety
- Equality, diversity and inclusion
- Safeguarding
- Financial procedures
- Procurement and commissioning
- Carry out other reasonable duties as agreed with your manager (please see supplementary task list for further examples).
- If there are any major changes to your role, these will be discussed with you and your Trade Union representative
Where you'll work
Town Hall
Pinstone Street
Sheffield
South Yorkshire
S1 2HH
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
SHEFFIELD CITY COUNCIL
Training course
Assistant accountant (level 3)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Assist with the investigation and response to financial information queries.
- Record and analyse financial data using the organisation’s standard tools and processes.
- Apply double entry bookkeeping and accounting standards to process financial documents, generate financial statements and report financial information to users of accounts.
- Assist with production of accurate financial information for the preparation of accounts.
- Reconcile financial data, such as, preparation of reconciliations or review of reconciliations.
- Investigate, resolve or escalate transactional queries and errors within their remit as appropriate.
- Develop and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders.
- Communicate financial information in a way that non-finance stakeholders can interpret and understand.
- Utilise digital skills to present key financial information using finance and accounting software and applications.
- Use software packages to assist with basic accounting tasks in line with cyber and data security requirements, using data securely and safely, including backing up data.
- Communicate using varying approaches and different media methods with an appreciation of the risks and benefits to the business of social media and other digital applications.
- Assist with the investigation and response to financial information queries.
- Record and analyse financial data using the organisation’s standard tools and processes.
- Apply double entry bookkeeping and accounting standards to process financial documents, generate financial statements and report financial information to users of accounts.
- Assist with production of accurate financial information for the preparation of accounts.
- Reconcile financial data, such as, preparation of reconciliations or review of reconciliations.
- Investigate, resolve or escalate transactional queries and errors within their remit as appropriate.
- Develop and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders.
- Communicate financial information in a way that non-finance stakeholders can interpret and understand.
- Utilise digital skills to present key financial information using finance and accounting software and applications.
- Use software packages to assist with basic accounting tasks in line with cyber and data security requirements, using data securely and safely, including backing up data.
- Communicate using varying approaches and different media methods with an appreciation of the risks and benefits to the business of social media and other digital applications.
Training schedule
- Training will be one day a week
- Training will be at Sheffield College
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
Desirable qualifications
A Level in:
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
- Presentation skills
- Administrative skills
- Number skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Creative
- Initiative
- Non judgemental
- Patience
About this employer
Sheffield City Council is the local authority for the City of Sheffield, a metropolitan borough with city status in South Yorkshire, England. The council consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under no overall control, with Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party each holding chair positions in a proportionate number of committees
https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/ (opens in new tab)
Disability Confident
A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.
You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.
After this apprenticeship
Oppportunity to move into a a full time role upon completion of apprenticeship.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
SHEFFIELD CITY COUNCIL
SCCApprenticeships@sheffield.gov.uk
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000332625.
Apply now
Closes in 15 days (Monday 11 August 2025)
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