Customer Service Apprenticeship

Aalco Metals

Gateshead (NE11 0NU)

Closes in 21 days (Friday 24 July 2026 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 2 July 2026

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Summary

A wonderful opportunity to join our supportive Customer Services and Admin team at Aalco Newcastle. We’re looking for someone who enjoys being part of a friendly, fast‑paced environment where each day brings something new. Your responsibilities will typically include booking deliveries, processing paperwork and providing admin support.

Wage

£20,000 a year

Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

We offer a profit share scheme

Training course
Customer service specialist (level 3)
Hours
Monday to Friday between 08.30- 17.00

37 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Tuesday 4 August 2026

Duration

1 year 3 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

The role will be predominately sales support to begin with assisting our sales team. Although every day is different, typical duties will include, but are not limited to:

  • Loading quotes
  • Checking Pricelists 
  • Communicating with stocklists and customers
  • Supporting with orders
  • Stock control
  • Completing the general day to day administration associated with a large distribution centre

Where you'll work

First Avenue
Team Valley Trading Estate
Gateshead
NE11 0NU

Training

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

Training provider

THE OPPORTUNITY PROVIDER LTD

Training course

Customer service specialist (level 3)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Business focused service delivery: Demonstrate a continuous improvement and future focussed approach to customer service delivery including decision making and providing recommendations or advice
  • Business focused service delivery: Resolve complex issues by being able to choose from and successfully apply a wide range of approaches
  • Business focused service delivery: Find solutions that meet your organisations needs as well as the customer requirements
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Through advanced questioning, listening and summarising negotiate mutually beneficial outcomes
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Manage challenging and complicated situations within your level of authority and make recommendations to enable and deliver change to service or strategy
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Use clear explanations, provide options and solutions to influence and help customers make choices and agree next steps
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Explore and interpret the customer experience to inform and influence achieving a positive result for customer satisfaction
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Demonstrate a cost conscious mind-set when meeting customer and the business needs
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Identifying where highs and lows of the customer journey produce a range of emotions in the customer
  • Providing a positive customer experience: Use written and verbal communication to simplify and provide complex information in a way that supports positive customer outcome in the relevant format
  • Working with customers/customer insights: Proactively gather customer feedback, through a variety of methods. Critically analyse, and evaluate the meaning, implication and facts and act upon it
  • Working with customers/customer insights: Analyse your customer types, to identify or anticipate their potential needs and expectations when providing your service
  • Customer Service performance: Maintain a positive relationship even when you are unable to deliver the customer’s expected outcome
  • Customer Service performance: When managing referrals or escalations take into account historical interactions and challenges to determine next steps
  • Service Improvement: Analyse the end to end service experience, seeking input from others where required, supporting development of solutions
  • Service Improvement: Make recommendations based on your findings to enable improvement
  • Service Improvement: Make recommendations and implement where possible, changes in line with new and relevant legislation, regulations and industry best practice

Training schedule

  • An apprenticeship includes regular training with a college or other training organisation
  • At least 20% of your working hours will be spent training or studying

Requirements

Desirable qualifications

GCSE in:

  • English (grade B /5)
  • Maths (grade B /5)

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
  • Administrative skills
  • Initiative
  • Eagerness to learn
  • Approachable
  • Computer Literate
  • Enthusiastic
  • Personable
  • Resilience

About this employer

Aalco is the UK's largest, independent multi-metals stockholder with 18 Service Centres across the country. We pride ourselves on offering our customers a responsive and competitive service for supplying anything from single item orders to major contracts. There really is no minimum (or maximum) amount you can order.

Company benefits

We also offer a pension, death in service and discount voucher scheme.

After this apprenticeship

Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).

  • Learning and growth are really important to us at Newcastle, and we’re genuinely proud of the development opportunities we offer
  • We’re committed to helping our team grow their skills and progress in their careers
  • This is an entry‑level role with plenty of opportunity to develop and build a long‑term future with us
  • You’ll receive full training and support, including your apprenticeship, to help you feel confident and set up for success

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

THE OPPORTUNITY PROVIDER LTD

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000040376.

Apply now

Closes in 21 days (Friday 24 July 2026 at 11:59pm)