Finance Apprentice - AAT Level 2

CHESTER DIOCESE ACADEMIES TRUST

Runcorn (WA7 4QX)

Closes in 25 days (Tuesday 8 July 2025 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 11 June 2025

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Summary

Gain practical experience supporting business finance while building skills in organisation, communication, and problem-solving. A great opportunity to earn, learn, and progress in your career with a nationally recognised qualification.

Wage

£20,635 a year

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

The pay may be negotiated and may rise after a probation period has been successfully completed.

Training course
Accounts or finance assistant (level 2)
Hours
Monday-Friday, 9.00am to 4.00pm (with 30 minutes lunch break).

32 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Monday 18 August 2025

Duration

1 year 4 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

Finance Support

  • Assist in the processing and entry of purchase orders and supplier invoices
  • Support the preparation and administration of the central BACS payment run
  • Help track and upload credit card receipts and statements from schools

•           Ensure financial records are accurately maintained and filed for audit purposes.

 Assist with monthly financial routines, including the preparation of month-end packs

School Liaison & Communication

  • Act as a first point of contact for school finance queries and direct to the appropriate team member where necessary
  • Support the collation of documentation from schools for audits, month-end, and monitoring purposes
  • Ensure schools are supported in understanding centralised processes and timelines

System Administration

  • Use Access Finance software to assist in maintaining accurate financial data and reports
  • Support the onboarding of new users, including helping schools access and use relevant finance portals
  • Contribute to the testing and updating of any electronic requisition or workflow systems

Procurement & Compliance

  • Maintain supplier records, ensuring appropriate documentation (e.g., contracts, insurance) is up-to-date
  • Assist with gathering quotes and documentation in line with procurement procedures
  • Help ensure purchase activity complies with trust financial regulations

Training and Development

  • Participate fully in all training and development activities as part of the apprenticeship programme
  • Engage in opportunities to shadow and learn from other members of the Finance Team, including exposure to bank reconciliation and monitoring processes

Other duties

  •  Carry out general administrative tasks as required by the Senior Finance Officer or Director of Finance
  • Support central team meetings, reports, and updates by preparing materials or taking notes if required
  • Travel occasionally to schools within the trust to support training or audits (mileage reimbursed per trust policy)

Where you'll work

The Heath Business & Technical Park
Runcorn
WA7 4QX

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

College or training organisation

DAMAR LIMITED

Your training course

Accounts or finance assistant (level 2)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Record transactional data.
  • Use the organisation’s standard tools and processes to examine data to identify transactional issues such as, reconciliations and inconsistencies between invoices.
  • Recognise and rectify routine errors, escalating as necessary.
  • Plan and review accounting and finance tasks.
  • Communicate with stakeholders to deliver accurate and timely results, avoiding jargon, using language tailored to the audience and different media methods with an appreciation of the risks and benefits to the business of social media and other digital applications.
  • Use finance and accounting software packages to accurately input and manage data to contribute to routine accounting tasks.
  • Handle data and digital technology in line with cyber and data security requirements, using data securely and safely, including backing up data.
  • Record transactional data.
  • Use the organisation’s standard tools and processes to examine data to identify transactional issues such as, reconciliations and inconsistencies between invoices.
  • Recognise and rectify routine errors, escalating as necessary.
  • Plan and review accounting and finance tasks.
  • Communicate with stakeholders to deliver accurate and timely results, avoiding jargon, using language tailored to the audience and different media methods with an appreciation of the risks and benefits to the business of social media and other digital applications.
  • Use finance and accounting software packages to accurately input and manage data to contribute to routine accounting tasks.
  • Handle data and digital technology in line with cyber and data security requirements, using data securely and safely, including backing up data.

Your training plan

  • AAT Level 2
  • Training will take place in the workplace and will be delivered weekly

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

  • English (grade 5 or above)
  • Maths (grade 5 or above)

Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • IT skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Organisation skills
  • Problem solving skills
  • Administrative skills
  • Number skills
  • Analytical skills
  • Logical
  • Team working
  • Initiative

About this company

CDAT is a multi academy trust established to support primary schools. There are presently 24 schools within the trust. The services provided to schools include legal, human resources, estates, health and safety, and data protection. We also have a school improvement team and a finance team.

http://www.cdat.co.uk (opens in new tab)

Disability Confident

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

  • Possibility to continue onto Level 3 whislt working for the organisation
  • Wider opportunities across education and the public sector generally

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

CHESTER DIOCESE ACADEMIES TRUST

Tom Nixon

tom.nixon@cdat.co.uk

01928244121

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000325429.

Apply now

Closes in 25 days (Tuesday 8 July 2025 at 11:59pm)

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