Junior Buyer Apprentice
CAF RAIL UK LIMITED
Manchester, Stockport
Closes in 14 days (Friday 8 May 2026)
Posted on 24 April 2026
Contents
Summary
Kick‑start your procurement career with CAF Rail Services UK. This apprenticeship supports our Procurement & Supply Chain Team with purchasing, supplier administration and data, while building commercial, analytical and supply chain skills and working towards a globally recognised qualification.
- Wage
-
£21,350 a year
- Training course
- Procurement and supply assistant (level 3)
- Hours
-
Monday to Friday between the hours of 09:00 - 17:00.
Your time will be split between 2 locations:
55 Spring Gardens, Manchester, M2 1EN.
Aurora Business Park, Stockport, SK3 0JF.
37 hours 30 minutes a week
- Start date
-
Monday 15 June 2026
- Duration
-
1 year 6 months
- Positions available
-
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
As a Junior Buyer Apprentice, you’ll support the procurement team with everyday buying activities, helping make sure parts and services are ordered, delivered on time and recorded correctly. You’ll learn how purchasing works in a real business environment while developing practical, hands‑on skills.
You will:
- Place and track orders for parts and services, making sure they’re approved and processed correctly
- Ask suppliers for prices and delivery times and help compare options
- Follow up orders, chase suppliers and keep delivery information up to date
- Keep procurement systems and records accurate and organised
- Support buyers with day‑to‑day purchasing tasks, reports and supplier queries
Where you'll work
You can select which locations you want to apply for in your application on Find an apprenticeship.
This apprenticeship is available in these locations:
- CAF Rail UK, 55 Spring Gardens, Manchester, M2 1EN
- CAF Rail UK, Aurora Business Park, Stockport, SK3 0JF
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
THE APPRENTICE ACADEMY LIMITED
Training course
Procurement and supply assistant (level 3)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Monitor and order products, stock, equipment and services at appropriate times using the appropriate procurement method.
- Communicate to procurement's internal stakeholders, suppliers and other stakeholders in order to develop effective relationships and networks
- Create, maintain and amend purchase order and contract records.
- Interpret, evaluate and compare procurement information such as historical spend and usage using databases and spreadsheets.
- Present findings and data in all formats e.g. mathematically, written and oral.
- Determine value for money (VFM) and added value through the use of Total Cost of Ownership during the evaluation process, and apply the most economically advantageous tender (MEAT) criteria to the evaluation of quotes and tenders to support the recommendation at award. This may include the inclusion of green, low carbon, sustainability, and ethical criteria.
- Utilise relevant Procurement computer systems or internal databases.
- Select the supplier of the most appropriate products and services for purchases within their remit and place purchase order.
- Undertake appraisal of adhoc and low spend suppliers including setting them up on the purchasing system.
- Effectively research and analyse demand, spend, trends, potential suppliers and industries utilising qualitative and quantitative methods.
- Develop specifications of requirements and requests for quotes/tenders in line with organisational requirements.
- Apply considerations of responsible procurement in evaluating potential suppliers, quotes and tenders.
- Investigate and resolve purchase order, delivery and invoice queries.
- Own low risk value projects such as supply contracts for stationery, personal protective equipment (PPE) or other consumables, and contribute to higher risk activities such as contracts for building services or machinery, and track, log, expedite and review outstanding orders and stock availability where applicable.
- Maintain knowledge on all open orders and their status' and provide assistance to all purchasing staff e.g. expediting and feeding information back to the relevant stakeholders.
- Able to consider the impact of the decision making process when interacting with the supply chain.
- Able to support the contract negotiations and mini competitions with suppliers.
- Monitor and order products, stock, equipment and services at appropriate times using the appropriate procurement method.
- Communicate to procurement's internal stakeholders, suppliers and other stakeholders in order to develop effective relationships and networks
- Create, maintain and amend purchase order and contract records.
- Interpret, evaluate and compare procurement information such as historical spend and usage using databases and spreadsheets.
- Present findings and data in all formats e.g. mathematically, written and oral.
- Determine value for money (VFM) and added value through the use of Total Cost of Ownership during the evaluation process, and apply the most economically advantageous tender (MEAT) criteria to the evaluation of quotes and tenders to support the recommendation at award. This may include the inclusion of green, low carbon, sustainability, and ethical criteria.
- Utilise relevant Procurement computer systems or internal databases.
- Select the supplier of the most appropriate products and services for purchases within their remit and place purchase order.
- Undertake appraisal of adhoc and low spend suppliers including setting them up on the purchasing system.
- Effectively research and analyse demand, spend, trends, potential suppliers and industries utilising qualitative and quantitative methods.
- Develop specifications of requirements and requests for quotes/tenders in line with organisational requirements.
- Apply considerations of responsible procurement in evaluating potential suppliers, quotes and tenders.
- Investigate and resolve purchase order, delivery and invoice queries.
- Own low risk value projects such as supply contracts for stationery, personal protective equipment (PPE) or other consumables, and contribute to higher risk activities such as contracts for building services or machinery, and track, log, expedite and review outstanding orders and stock availability where applicable.
- Maintain knowledge on all open orders and their status' and provide assistance to all purchasing staff e.g. expediting and feeding information back to the relevant stakeholders.
- Able to consider the impact of the decision making process when interacting with the supply chain.
- Able to support the contract negotiations and mini competitions with suppliers.
Training schedule
Training will primarily take place on-site at CAF Rail UK, supported by structured learning and mentoring from experienced team members.
The apprentice will also complete 6 hours of off‑the‑job learning each week, including 3 hours of structured tutor-led learning (online), with the remaining time for study and assessment.
More training information
The programme includes 5 mandatory Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS) exams, all of which must be passed to complete the apprenticeship. Apprentices are supported throughout through structured learning, regular reviews, progress meetings and exam preparation support, combining practical on‑the‑job experience with guided training to help them succeed.
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
- English (grade 4)
- Maths (grade 4)
Desirable qualifications
A Level in:
BTEC 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
- Customer care skills
- Administrative skills
- Analytical skills
- Initiative
Other requirements
- Strong attention to detail and a methodical approach to administration
- Good written and verbal communication skills
- Confident using Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, Outlook and Word
- Good numeracy and the ability to work with data, prices and basic reports
- Ability to organise tasks, manage priorities and meet deadlines
- A commitment to learning with a desire to build a career within engineering, manufacturing, transport or rail
About this employer
CAF Rail UK are part of a multinational group with over 100 years of experience in the supply of comprehensive transit solutions positioned at the forefront of technology for high value added sustainable mobility. The company is a leader of the railway industry offering one of the most comprehensive and flexible arrays of products in railway related markets, such as rolling stock, components, infrastructure, signalling and services (maintenance, refurbishing and financial services).
https://www.cafmobility.com/uk/ (opens in new tab)
Company benefits
- 25 days annual leave
- Pension Scheme
- Career development
- Paid volunteering days
- Healthcare cash plan
- Bike2Work
After this apprenticeship
Upon successful completion of the apprenticeship, the candidate may have the opportunity to progress into a full‑time role at CAF, with scope to continue developing their skills.
With experience, there are opportunities to move into more senior roles within procurement and pursue further professional development, including higher‑level qualifications.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
THE APPRENTICE ACADEMY LIMITED
recruitment@cafrail.co.uk
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000028063.
Apply now
Closes in 14 days (Friday 8 May 2026)
After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.