What you can expect from us
- We offer a Real Living Wage salary of £24,479 per annum.
- 37 hour per week
- 32 days annual leave plus bank holidays a total of 40 days paid holiday per annum which is equivalent to 8 weeks.
- Salary Finance - access both short and long terms loans, plus provides access to a savings facility.
- Opportunity to further increase annual leave with service or though the holiday purchase scheme.
- Immediate entry to our Pension scheme (matched contributions up to 10%)
- A great flexible working environment, with a range of family friendly policies.
- Health cash plan with financial benefits and the option to extend to your family. Cover includes dental, optical, physiotherapy, 24HR private GP access and much more.
- Paid leave for absence including sickness, maternity, paternity, and adoption leave.
- Access of up to £150 annually through the ‘Learning for life’ scheme.
- Access to a wide range of discounts and cash back offers, ranging from retail and automotive to holidays and cycle to work scheme.
- Develop your career with support and access to training and qualifications.
- 2 paid half days volunteering per year.
Start Your Career in Housing with Onward Homes
At Onward Homes, we're passionate about creating great places to live and supporting people to build rewarding careers. That's why we've developed our Housing Apprenticeship Programme – a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience, professional qualifications, and real insight into one of the UK's most important sectors.
Housing is about much more than homes. It's about supporting communities, improving lives, and delivering services that make a real difference every day. Through this apprenticeship, you'll develop a broad understanding of social housing while building the knowledge, skills and experience needed for a successful long-term career.
Over the 24-month programme, you'll start your journey with an initial six-month placement in our Accrington Contact Centre. This will give you a fantastic foundation in customer service, helping you understand our customers, our services and how different teams across the organisation work together.
Following this, you'll complete a series of structured placements across several departments, gaining exposure to different areas of the business. These placements could be based at any of our locations across the North West, providing valuable experience and helping you discover where your interests and strengths lie.
Job specific requirements
To get the most from this opportunity, you'll need to be:
- Passionate about helping people and making a difference in local communities.
- Keen to learn, develop new skills and work towards a professional qualification.
- Comfortable working with a variety of people and delivering excellent customer service.
- Flexible and adaptable, with the ability to work across different teams and locations.
- Organised and motivated, with a positive attitude and strong communication skills.
- Able to travel independently across the North West as part of your department rotations.
- In possession of a full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle, as some placements will require travel between Onward locations (Accrington, Liverpool, Didsbury).
This is more than an apprenticeship – it's the chance to build a career with a purpose and gain experience across one of the largest housing providers in the North West.
Job Responsibilities
Learning & Development
- Participate in structured rotations across Onward, complete structured training modules and professional qualifications.
- Shadow frontline teams to understand key Housing and Property Management functions (i.e. Neighbourhoods, Tenancy Support, Repairs and Customer Services).
- Work with mentors to set goals, track progress, and build confidence. Engage in reflective practice through learning logs, presentations, and supervision sessions.
Collaboration & Teamwork
- Build positive relationships across departments and with external partners. Communicate clearly in meetings, emails, and reports.
- Share learning with peers and colleagues to support a culture of continuous improvement.
Customer & Community Engagement
- Assist with customer engagement activities – for example; surveys, community events and feedback sessions.
- Help manage low-risk casework ensuring customers receive timely and accurate support.
- Contribute to service improvement initiatives based on customer insight and data.
Project & Analytical Work
- Support cross-departmental projects that improve efficiency, digital capability, or customer experience.
- Conduct research and benchmarking on sector trends, policy changes, and best practice.
Compliance & Governance
- Support policy reviews to ensure alignment with legislation and organisational standards.
- Prepare reports and briefings for internal and external stakeholders.
Skills/Experience
Essential
- Strong communication skills with the ability to engage confidently with colleagues, customers, and partners.
- Analytical and problem-solving ability with attention to detail.
- Commitment to social purpose and improving outcomes for customers and communities.
- Adaptability and willingness to learn across different teams and environments.
- Basic digital literacy including Microsoft Office and data handling.
Desirable:
- Volunteering or community experience.
- Knowledge of the housing sector or public services.
- Project experience from university, work, or extracurricular activities.
Qualifications
Essential: A-level education or equivalent qualification.
Desirable: Degree level education or equivalent