Apprenticeships and T Levels

Apprenticeships at Combined

Apprenticeships combine real work with training and study for a specific role. You’ll learn new skills, gain experience and earn a salary, too.

Being an apprentice can be an exciting and rewarding career path. Before applying you should also consider that as an apprentice you’ll have to:

balance a job with studying and your home life
work under supervision and guidance
complete regular assessments, including an end-point assessment
Is an apprenticeship right for you? Find out here.

Apprenticeship routes at Combined

Entry level recruitment

All of our apprenticeships are advertised on NHS Jobs – just search ‘North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust’.

Existing staff

Whether you are moving to a new position or wish to develop your existing role and can demonstrate that you will be learning substantial new skills through the apprenticeship programme, apprenticeships are available for Combined Healthcare staff.

Listed below are examples of the types of apprenticeships currently being undertaken within the trust:

Nursing Associate
Nursing Bsc and MSC
Advanced Clinical Practitioner
Enhanced Clinical Practitioner
Occupational Therapist
Social Work
Clinical Associate in Psychology
Business Administration
Customer Service
Health Care Support Worker
Leadership and management
Project Management
Joinery
Pharmacy

Meeting our apprenticeship public sector target

In line with Public Sector Apprenticeship Targets Regulations 2017, we share our progress on meeting the target of having 2.3% of our workforce as apprenticeships.

We are committed to meeting our identified target and are working towards having the necessary culture, systems and opportunities to enable this to become a reality.

Apprenticeships – target reporting

Reporting period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024

Employees

Apprenticeships

Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2023 – 101
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2024 – 129
Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2023 – 32

Reporting percentages

Useful links

Our apprentice vacancies are also advertised on the government’s website.

Find further information on all apprenticeships here.

Find information and resources on a wide range of NHS careers here.

For advice on career pathways into the NHS for 14 to 19 year olds, plus a career mapping quiz and information on apprenticeships, work experience and personal case studies visit Step into the NHS.

Young people can experience courses and careers before applying via Springpod.

T Levels

T Levels are two-year courses within technical education designed by the Department for Education and launched in September 2020.

The T Level courses are taken after GCSEs for young people aged between 16 and 19 years old. They are equivalent of three A Levels and have been developed in partnership with employers and education providers so that the content meets the needs of industry.

It prepares students for further or higher education, skilled employment, or an apprenticeship.

Combined Healthcare has a great T Level offer across corporate and clinical services. We work with Newcastle College and Stoke-on-Trent College and we currently have placements in:

Business Administration and Corporate services rotation
Estates Administration
Community Nursing RNLD and RMN
AHP Community

To apply for a T Level with Combined Healthcare, please complete the below form and return to wideningparticipation@combined.nhs.uk.

To request more information, please contact wideningparticipation@combined.nhs.uk.

Table of Contents