Private Office and Secretariat Administrator (Apprenticeship)

Job summary

Provide accurate and responsive administrative support across Private Office and Secretariat while completing an approved apprenticeship programme. Develop practical skills in executive support, governance administration, communication, records management and customer service under appropriate supervision.

Job description

The postholder's main accountabilities will be as follows:

• Administrative coordination: Maintain calendars, contact lists, logs, trackers, templates and shared mailboxes, referring judgement-based decisions to the appropriate Grade 9 manager.
• Meeting logistics: Arrange rooms or virtual links, invites, visitors, accessibility needs, catering and materials in collaboration with central support teams.
• Papers and document control: Create meeting folders, format and collate papers, maintain version control, issue approved packs and file final records.
• Minutes and actions: Take notes at allocated meetings, prepare first drafts of minutes and update action logs for review and approval by the Secretariat and Governance Manager.
• Diary and inbox support: Undertake delegated scheduling, inbox monitoring and routine responses for the Secretariat service in line with clear instructions and escalation routes.
• Travel and expenses: Make approved travel and accommodation arrangements and maintain accurate expenditure records and supporting information.
• Council and stakeholder administration: Update records, coordinate routine communications and provide practical administrative support for Council members and other stakeholders.
• Records management: File correspondence and governance records securely and consistently, following information management, data protection and retention requirements.
• Team support and resilience: Provide flexible administrative support across both workstreams and contribute to team improvement activity.

Who we are

Acas exists to make working life better for everyone in Britain. We are the experts in workplace matters, we’re impartial, so we’re not on anyone’s side. That means we’re working for everyone to help prevent, manage and resolve workplace issues.

Acas helps employers and employees by providing information, advice, training, conciliation and other services that prevent, manage or resolve workplace problems.

Acas: Britain’s Workplace Experts

Acas has been recognised for its Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace from the Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion awards; it is a Disability Confident Leader, a Pay Gap award winner, and an Overall winner for public sector organisations. Acas is committed to providing services and developing policies which embrace diversity, promote equality of opportunity and eliminate unlawful discrimination.

Eligibility Criteria:

This is a development role, so to be eligible to apply, the training and development you receive during this apprenticeship must provide you with significant new skills and learning. This is an essential requirement for apprenticeship funding and means you must not already be over-qualified or over-experienced in this type of work.

In addition, you must:

• Not hold or be working towards a similar level or higher-level qualification to the apprenticeship, UNLESS this is in a significantly different subject/business area
• Be aged 16 or over (there is no upper age limit)
• Have the permanent right to work in the UK and have been ordinarily resident in the UK/EU/EA for 3 consecutive years before starting the apprenticeship
• Have left full-time education by the time the apprenticeship starts and not be in receipt of funding for other learning programmes (including another apprenticeship)
• Have 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) at grade C or the new grade level 4, including English and Maths

Please note: You will be asked to provide evidence of GCSEs and additional certifications during onboarding if you have successfully secured a role.

Failure to meet any of the eligibility criteria or not listing your qualifications in the CV/Qualification section may result in you being withdrawn and you will not be sifted through to the next stage of recruitment.

Apprentices aged 19 and over at the start of their apprenticeship training will no longer be required to hold or achieve English and maths qualifications to pass their apprenticeship. Apprentices who are aged 16 to 18 at the start of their training will still be required to achieve English and maths qualifications to support their career progression.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• The successful candidate must have 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) at grade C or the new grade level 4, including English and Maths.
• Clear written and verbal communication and a commitment to high-quality customer service.
• Strong organisation, accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to manage several tasks, follow procedures and ask for support or escalate appropriately.
• Confidence using, or willingness to learn, Microsoft 365 applications including Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel and SharePoint.
• Commitment to completing the relevant apprenticeship programme and applying learning in the workplace.
• Ability to handle confidential information responsibly.

Desirable criteria (the following will only be assessed in the event of tie-breaker scenarios):

• Experience of administration, customer service, diary support or meeting coordination, including experience gained through education, volunteering or work.

Qualifications

The successful candidate must have 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) at grade C or the new grade level 4, including English and Maths.

If equivalent is held, please provide additional details.

As above, apprentices aged 19 and over at the start of their apprenticeship training, will no longer be required to hold or achieve English and maths qualifications to pass their apprenticeship. Apprentices who are aged 16 to 18 at the start of their training, will still be required to achieve English and maths qualifications to support their career progression.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Managing a Quality Service
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £27,000, Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service contributes £7,821 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

We’re big believers in rewarding people for the amazing work they do. Take a look at some of the fantastic benefits we offer:

• Learning and Development
• Health and wellbeing
• Pension scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Volunteering opportunities

Could you ask for any more?

You’ll have access to a Lifestyle website where you’ll be able to grab savings on a wide range of products, from holidays to your weekly shop.

To find out more, check out: Working for Acas

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Ability and Experience.

How to apply

Please click on the 'Apply now' button.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete:

• a Situational Judgement Test as part of the online application, this will follow immediately after the initial short application form is submitted. If you successfully pass the test, you will be invited to complete the full application. Please complete the online tests as soon as possible (within 24-48 hours is recommended) to give yourself enough time to complete your full application.
  
  If you fail to complete the online test and submit your full application before the application deadline, your application will be withdrawn. Guidance for the test will be available when you are invited to take the test. The tests are administered online and accessed via the CS Jobs website. You can find further information in the reasonable adjustment guide for online tests and practise tests are also available here
  
  IMPORTANT NOTE: Online Tests (such as the Situational Judgement Test) will be temporarily unavailable from 06:00 AM on 14 November 2026 until 06:00 AM on 16 November 2026. This is due to system maintenance.
• a 250-word statement on each of the following Behaviours: Managing a Quality Service; Delivering at Pace; Working Together
  
  
• a 250-word Personal Statement reflecting only the Desirable Experience criteria, as listed in the Person specification section of this advert.
  [Note: the Desirable criteria will only be assessed in the event of tie-breaker scenarios].

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the:

• Lead Behaviour: Managing a Quality Service

Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift of all the above requirements or progressed straight to interview.

If a large number of applications meet the minimum standard an interview wait list may be created for this position. This means that if you have met the minimum requirements at sift you may be placed at a ‘Hold’ status for up to 12 months and if we are able to invite you to an interview we will be in touch.

Interview Details
If you have successfully passed sift at the application stage, you will be invited to an interview which will take place via Microsoft Teams and which is likely to take place from the week commencing 07 December2026.

It will be a Behaviour and Experience based interview.

The following Behaviours will be assessed at interview:

• Managing a Quality Service
• Working Together

The following Essential Experience will be assessed at interview:

• Clear written and verbal communication and a commitment to high-quality customer service.
• Strong organisation, accuracy and attention to detail.

A reserve list will be created for this position; this means that if you have passed the interview, but we cannot immediately offer you this position, you will be placed on a reserve list for 12 months and may be considered for similar positions during that time.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader, Acas is committed to creating an inclusive recruitment process. If you have a disability and feel that any part of the recruitment process puts you at a disadvantage, we will work with you to make Reasonable Adjustments that support your needs. If you require any changes to help you apply:

• Please contact the Acas Recruitment Team via HRrecruitment@acas.org.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

• Complete the “Assistance Required” section on the “Additional Requirements” page of your application form to let us know about any adjustments or support you may need during the recruitment process. For example, this might include accessibility arrangements for entering a building or interview room, communication support, modifications to assessment methods, etc.

• You can find out more about the Disability Confident Scheme and Reasonable Adjustments.

Want to learn more about Civil Service recruitment? You can find out more on Civil Service Careers, including information on Success Profiles, writing a Personal Statement, acceptable use of Artificial Intelligence, and what to expect at Interview.

For applicants requiring a visa to work in the UK

Please be advised that Acas does not hold a UKVI Sponsorship Licence, so we cannot consider sponsoring a visa applicant or issuing a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Lorna Hayward
• Email : LHAYWARD@acas.org.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : HRRecruitment@acas.org.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Code and wish to make a complaint, you should contact us on via HRrecruitment@acas.org.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from us, you can contact the Civil Service Commission.

Attachments

Job Description - G10 Private Office and Secretariat Administrator (Apprenticeship) Opens in new window (docx, 63kB)