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What You’ll Gain As A Learner
Through expert teaching, quality resources and ongoing support from industry professionals, you will gain the skills, knowledge and behaviours needed to liaise with customers and provide them with the essential information they need to support sales, customer service and complaints teams. With nearly 20 years of training expertise and a 99% learner success rate, we are your trusted partner in supporting your career growth and helping you empower young lives.
What You’ll Gain As An Employer
Your success is our priority. We provide expert teaching through quality resources and ongoing support to take your staff to the next level as they progress in their customer service career. From providing them with the basis of knowledge in sales, customer service and complaints teams, your staff can progress to higher level apprenticeships and join the Institute of Customer Service. With nearly 2 decades of training expertise and a 99% learner success rate, leave the teaching to us as we support the next generation of teaching professionals on their journey to empowering the lives of children and young people.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Level 2 Customer Service Practitioner Apprenticeship is an entry-level programme designed to develop the skills, knowledge and behaviours needed to deliver excellent customer service across a wide range of industries.
Throughout the apprenticeship, learners develop key skills such as effective communication, handling customer enquiries and complaints, problem-solving, and supporting their organisation to deliver a high-quality customer experience. This role is essential in helping businesses build positive customer relationships and maintain a strong brand reputation.
This apprenticeship is suitable for both new entrants to the workplace and employees already working in customer-facing roles who want to build confidence and strengthen their customer service skills. It is ideal for learners who enjoy working with people, solving problems and delivering a positive customer experience.
No previous customer service experience is required to start the programme. However, learners should be motivated to learn and able to apply their training within their job role throughout the apprenticeship.
Depending on prior qualifications, learners may need to complete Maths and English Functional Skills as part of the programme if they do not already hold GCSE grade 4/C (or equivalent).
You will develop essential customer service skills, including communication, problem-solving and building customer relationships. You will learn how to understand customer needs, handle challenging situations and represent your organisation professionally. The programme also covers organisational knowledge, teamwork and personal development, helping you become confident, adaptable and ready to progress in your career.
Off-the-job training is structured learning that takes place during your paid working hours but is separate from your normal day-to-day duties. You’re required to complete a minimum of six hours per week of this training to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed for your apprenticeship. Activities can include online learning, workshops, research, mentoring and other development tasks relevant to your role.
You can also use our Learner Enrichment Calendar to help plan and log suitable off-the-job activities that count towards your training hours, giving you a variety of ways to grow your skills throughout the programme.
All off-the-job training hours must be recorded on your e-portfolio system, Aptem, to ensure your progress is tracked throughout your apprenticeship.
The apprenticeship typically lasts around 16 months. During this time, you will take part in a blend of face-to-face and online learning, supported by a dedicated tutor. You will also complete at least six hours per week of off-the-job training to build your skills, before finishing with an end-point assessment.
For the learner, there is no cost.
For employers, the cost depends on whether you pay the apprenticeship levy:
• Levy-paying employers: You can use your apprenticeship levy funds to cover the full cost of the programme. These funds are accessed through your digital apprenticeship service account.
• Non-levy employers: The government will fund 95% of the training cost, meaning you only pay the remaining 5%. Based on the £4,000 funding band, this equates to just £200.
This makes apprenticeships a highly cost-effective way to develop your workforce, with the majority of training costs covered through government support.
To complete this apprenticeship, learners must have been a UK, EEA, or EU resident for at least the last three years.
Additionally, if you are aged between 16 and 18 and do not have a Level 2 qualification or equivalent (GCSE grade 4/C) in Maths and English, you will be required to work towards obtaining these as part of your apprenticeship.
For those aged 19 and above, completing Maths and English (Functional Skills) is optional rather than mandatory to complete your apprenticeship. However, this needs to be discussed and agreed upon with your employer.
Functional Skills are nationally recognised qualifications in Maths and English that help learners develop practical skills used in the workplace and everyday life. These qualifications support areas such as communication, problem-solving, reading, writing and numeracy.
The Childcare Company understands that completing Functional Skills in Maths and English alongside your apprenticeship can feel daunting at first, as well as time consuming. That’s why we provide enhanced support to make the process as straightforward and efficient as possible.
We’ve partnered with Pass Functional Skills (PASS) to give you access to a new, improved online learning platform designed to help you achieve your qualifications more quickly and with greater confidence.
Through this platform, you’ll benefit from a clear and structured learning journey, including a diagnostic assessment to identify your starting point, personalised learning pathways, and high-quality interactive resources. You’ll also have access to bite-sized learning modules, practice questions, mock assessments, and progress tracking tools to help you stay on track.
Alongside this, you will continue to receive support from your tutor or development coach throughout your apprenticeship, ensuring you have guidance, feedback and encouragement at every stage of your Functional Skills journey.
Yes. Apprentices are employees and are entitled to paid holidays and workplace benefits in the same way as other members of staff. Holiday entitlement will normally be outlined within your employment contract and may vary depending on your employer and working hours. Most apprentices are entitled to at least 20 days of paid holiday per year plus bank holidays.
As an apprentice, you will earn a wage while gaining valuable experience and working towards a recognised early years qualification. Apprentices are also entitled to workplace rights including rest breaks and a safe working environment.
Once you have completed the Level 2 Customer Service Practitioner Apprenticeship, you will be well placed to continue developing your skills and progress your career across customer service, business administration, and leadership roles.
A natural next step is to progress onto our Level 3 Customer Service Specialist Apprenticeship, where you will build on your existing knowledge and develop more advanced customer service skills, including managing complex queries, improving customer experience, and taking on greater responsibility within your role.
You may also choose to broaden your skills through our Level 3 Business Administrator Apprenticeship, which supports the development of wider organisational and administrative skills that are highly valued across a range of business environments.
