Customer Service and Reception Apprenticeship

NOAKES HABERMEHL AND KERR LIMITED

Plymouth, PLYMOUTH

Closes in 25 days (Sunday 30 November 2025 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 4 November 2025

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Summary

This vacancy offers an ideal opportunity to develop customer skills and experience as an Optical Receptionist working for a busy practice based in Crownhill. The role is customer facing so you would be dealing with new and existing clients both face to face and over the phone, assisting with taking payments for services and booking appointments.

Wage

£14,722.50 for your first year, then could increase depending on your age

National Minimum Wage rate for apprentices

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

Training course
Customer service practitioner (level 2)
Hours
Monday - Friday, 9.00am - 5.30pm. Saturday, 9.00am - 12.30pm (you will be allocated a half day off during the week).

37 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Monday 1 December 2025

Duration

1 year

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

  • Providing excellent customer service at all times both face to face and over the phone
  • Liaising with other practices, managing client records and booking appointments
  • Preparing patient records for clinics and filing, taking payments, providing advice to patients, opening and closing consulting rooms and practice
  • Maintaining a clean and safe area for all clients and supporting a positive experience for all who visit the practice
  • Providing general office/admin support to admin team as/when required

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:

  • 62 Ridgeway, Plympton, Plymouth, PL7 2AL
  • 2 MEAVY WAY, PLYMOUTH, PL5 3BW

Training

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

Training provider

FOCUS TRAINING (SW) LIMITED

Training course

Customer service practitioner (level 2)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Use a range of questioning skills, including listening and responding in a way that builds rapport, determines customer needs and expectations and achieves positive engagement and delivery.
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication skills, along with summarising language during face-to-face communications; and/or
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use appropriate communication skills, along with reinforcement techniques (to confirm understanding) during non-facing customer interactions.
  • Depending on your job role and work environment: Use an appropriate ‘tone of voice’ in all communications, including written and digital, that reflect the organisation’s brand.
  • Provide clear explanations and offer options in order to help customers make choices that are mutually beneficial to both the customer and your organisation.
  • Be able to organise yourself, prioritise your own workload/activity and work to meet deadlines.
  • Demonstrate patience and calmness.
  • Show you understand the customer’s point of view.
  • Use appropriate sign-posting or resolution to meet your customers needs and manage expectations.
  • Maintain informative communication during service recovery.

Training schedule

  • Full Customer Service Practitioner Standard - Level 2
  • On the job training to support job/role development
  • Off the job training to support qualification requirements (College attendance one day per month)
  • Employer to provide dedicated training time for Off the Job training requirements

Requirements

Desirable qualifications

GCSE in:

  • English (grade A*/9 - C/4)
  • Mathematics (grade A*/9 - C/4)

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
  • Team working
  • Initiative
  • Patience

Other requirements

Part of qualification will require regular College attendance (one full day per month) to complete Off The Job training requirements. Training Centre is based at Marsh Mills, Plymouth. The role will involve working between different branches, whilst primarily based in Crownhill you will also be required to spend some time working from the Plympton branch and this will be discussed at interview.

About this employer

From small beginnings we have grown into a modern optical group with six well established practices based in and around Plymouth, South West Devon and Cornwall, along with our state-of-the-art optical lab at Ivybridge. We pride ourselves on retaining a high proportion of clinically qualified staff, working with local universities to offer placements to medical and optometry students and we regularly support a pre-reg Optometrist during their final year of qualification. ​

After this apprenticeship

  • Possibility for progression within the company and further training/development - Clinical Assistant and Dispensing Optician for the right candidate on successful completion of Level 2

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

FOCUS TRAINING (SW) LIMITED

Trevor Barnes

trevor.b@tftg.org

07836536590

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000349432.

Apply now

Closes in 25 days (Sunday 30 November 2025 at 11:59pm)

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