Junior Journalist Apprenticeship - Level 5 - BBC Radio Somerset - Taunton
BBC Public Service
Taunton (TA1 2UH)
Closes in 19 days (Tuesday 24 November 2026)
Posted on 4 November 2026
Contents
Summary
Join us as an apprentice at the BBC to give yourself the opportunity to kick-start your career in a job you'll love. We’re committed to your skills and talent development. You’ll learn on-the-job, developing your knowledge and skills in an area that interests you, whilst working towards your apprenticeship qualification.
- Wage
-
£24,650 a year
- Training course
- Junior journalist (level 5)
- Hours
-
Full time, 35 hours per week. Shifts to be confirmed.
35 hours a week
- Start date
-
Tuesday 7 September 2027
- Duration
-
2 years
- 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
As a Junior Journalist apprentice, this is a brilliant opportunity to learn, grow and contribute. On this team you can expect to:
- Work alongside experienced journalists developing your skills while creating high-quality content.
- Get hands on experience including researching stories, booking guests and writing briefs.
- Discover and develop compelling stories, assisting with interviews that bring important issues to life for diverse audiences.
- Learn from industry experts at the world's largest public service broadcaster.
Where you'll work
Winchester House
Deane Gate Avenue
Taunton
TA1 2UH
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
THE PRESS ASSOCIATION LIMITED
Training course
Junior journalist (level 5)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Undertake research before reporting to ensure that journalistic content/material published or broadcast is accurate, impartial, balanced, engages the audience and is verifiable with industry standard use of English.
- Identify, select, and verify multiple sources of information, including people, reports, data and social media, cross-checking and corroborating when necessary.
- Take accurate, relevant notes when and where needed, use shorthand where required by your employer.
- Assess the strengths/weaknesses of available platforms and where and when journalistic content is likely to work best.
- Assess and produce journalistic content in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements; ethical issues and organisational specifications, alerting senior managers when necessary.
- Make decisions and judgements at speed and when under pressure, on the way stories are researched and presented, aiming to lead when breaking news.
- Find and use contacts to create journalistic content and exclusive stories which meet the needs of the target audience. Verify information from contacts and critically review its short and long-term implications.
- Use audience analytics to evaluate the success of the journalistic content and how that can inform future decision-making.
- Monitor relevant social media on a systematic basis. Proactively seek, verify and curate sources of user-generated content that will help improve targeted content, grow the audience and the depth of engagement.
- Produce journalistic content using language which resonates with the audience as measured by audience analytics, social media interaction and reach or other internal "tools" used by employers to understand audience sentiment.
- Produce journalistic content in multimedia combinations as required which "draw in" the viewer/listener/user to tell the complete story.
- Report live to the audience from the scene of an event using remote technologies.
- Publish journalistic content, using all available tools to enhance the user experience.
- Undertake different types of interviews to extract information, identifying and selecting the right interviewing technique to suit the interviewee and seeking to make a connection with the subject.
- Evaluate answers from interviewees to inform further questioning, probing for detail and inconsistencies in replies given. If needed, identify other people to speak to.
- Check and evaluate own work in relation to industry standards, adhering to employer guidelines. Ensure it is of a quality to maintain the organisation's reputation in the industry.
- Seek constructive feedback from relevant people about your performance; taking action as required.
- Consider the impact of equality and diversity practices on individuals and groups and ensure those practices are inclusive.
- Locate, clean and interrogate datasets to inform content generation.
- Undertake research before reporting to ensure that journalistic content/material published or broadcast is accurate, impartial, balanced, engages the audience and is verifiable with industry standard use of English.
- Identify, select, and verify multiple sources of information, including people, reports, data and social media, cross-checking and corroborating when necessary.
- Take accurate, relevant notes when and where needed, use shorthand where required by your employer.
- Assess the strengths/weaknesses of available platforms and where and when journalistic content is likely to work best.
- Assess and produce journalistic content in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements; ethical issues and organisational specifications, alerting senior managers when necessary.
- Make decisions and judgements at speed and when under pressure, on the way stories are researched and presented, aiming to lead when breaking news.
- Find and use contacts to create journalistic content and exclusive stories which meet the needs of the target audience. Verify information from contacts and critically review its short and long-term implications.
- Use audience analytics to evaluate the success of the journalistic content and how that can inform future decision-making.
- Monitor relevant social media on a systematic basis. Proactively seek, verify and curate sources of user-generated content that will help improve targeted content, grow the audience and the depth of engagement.
- Produce journalistic content using language which resonates with the audience as measured by audience analytics, social media interaction and reach or other internal "tools" used by employers to understand audience sentiment.
- Produce journalistic content in multimedia combinations as required which "draw in" the viewer/listener/user to tell the complete story.
- Report live to the audience from the scene of an event using remote technologies.
- Publish journalistic content, using all available tools to enhance the user experience.
- Undertake different types of interviews to extract information, identifying and selecting the right interviewing technique to suit the interviewee and seeking to make a connection with the subject.
- Evaluate answers from interviewees to inform further questioning, probing for detail and inconsistencies in replies given. If needed, identify other people to speak to.
- Check and evaluate own work in relation to industry standards, adhering to employer guidelines. Ensure it is of a quality to maintain the organisation's reputation in the industry.
- Seek constructive feedback from relevant people about your performance; taking action as required.
- Consider the impact of equality and diversity practices on individuals and groups and ensure those practices are inclusive.
- Locate, clean and interrogate datasets to inform content generation.
Training schedule
You’ll study for your industry-recognised apprenticeship qualification, learning both on and off the job.
This involves weekly virtual webinars + in-person bootcamps at PA Media Academy in London.
You’ll cover a range of modules for the NCTJ Diploma including:
- Media Law
- Essential Journalism
- Broadcast Journalism
- Journalism for a Digital Audience
- Video Journalism
Modules will be assessed through exams, coursework and a portfolio of work.
Requirements
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Problem solving skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Creative
- Initiative
Other requirements
To be eligible for an apprenticeship at the BBC, you must:
- Be 18 years old or over by the time the apprenticeship begins in September 2027. The BBC operates a minimum age of 18 on all Apprenticeship schemes for Health and Safety and Child Protection reasons.
- Have lived in the UK continuously for the last three years prior to the start of the apprenticeship.
- Be legally eligible to work full-time in the UK for the entire duration of the apprenticeship.
- Not currently be enrolled in another apprenticeship programme, whether with the BBC or another organisation.
- Not already hold a qualification in the same subject area at the same or a higher level than this apprenticeship.
To apply for this scheme, you must also:
- Not have completed or be studying for the NCTJ diploma or a journalism qualification at the same level or higher.
- Have achieved English GCSE at Grade 4/C or above, or National 5 (Scotland) at C or Functional Skills Level 2 or equivalent qualification.
For candidates under the age of 19 years at the start of the apprenticeship: To complete the apprenticeship, you must have achieved Maths and English GCSE at Grade 4/C or above or National 5 (Scotland) at C or Functional Skills Level 2 or equivalent qualification to pass the apprenticeship.
About this employer
We are a leading early careers employer and hire more than 250 apprentices each year. We are committed to skills and talent development both inside and outside the BBC and, as one of the world’s most creative and technologically-advanced organisations for the last 100 years, a career at the BBC means learning from the best. We want people who show potential to join us at the BBC. Don’t worry if you don’t have extensive experience, it’s your passion and values we are interested in.
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
Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).
Journalist.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
THE PRESS ASSOCIATION LIMITED
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000062223.
Apply now
Closes in 19 days (Tuesday 24 November 2026)
After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.