Apprentice - Refrigeration Air Conditioning Technician: Level 3 - Central Rivers 2026

ALSTOM Gruppe; Burton upon Trent; On-site; GBP 18,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering company in Burton-upon-Trent is seeking an Apprentice HVAC Technician. This fixed term position offers training through a 39-month Apprenticeship Development Programme, allowing you to work alongside experienced professionals and gain hands-on experience across multiple departments. Applicants should have at least 5 GCSEs of grade 4-9, including Maths, English, and Science, and a driving licence is desirable. This role supports career development in a stable and dynamic environment.

Benefits

Comprehensive and competitive social coverage (life, medical, pension)

Qualifications

• You will need a minimum of 5 GCSEs of Grade 4 – 9, including Maths, English, and a Science.
• Self-motivated and able to demonstrate commitment to achieving the apprenticeship standard.
• Understanding the importance of precision and accuracy.

Responsibilities

• Attend all planned college requirements.
• Complete all required College work on time and to standard.
• Work in line with Alstom’s Zero Deviation Policy.
• Follow all established Alstom depot processes.

Skills

Understanding the importance of precision and accuracy

Self-motivated

Teamwork

Initiative

Education

5 GCSEs of Grade 4 – 9 including Maths, English, Science

Job description

Company: Alstom

Location: Burton-upon-Trent (Central Rivers), DE13 8ES

Appointment Basis: Fixed Term

Application Deadline: 30th January 2026

Salary: £18,000 per annum

At Alstom, we understand transport networks and what moves people. From high‑speed trains, metros, monorails, and trams, to turnkey systems, services, infrastructure, signalling and digital mobility, we offer our diverse customers the broadest portfolio in the industry. Every day, 80,000 colleagues lead the way to greener and smarter mobility worldwide, connecting cities as we reduce carbon and replace cars.

Your future role

This is an opportunity to join a world‑leading engineering company through a well‑established 39‑month (to include End Point Assessment) Apprenticeship Development Programme. You will work alongside experienced professionals and receive strong support, mentoring and coaching while developing against the Apprenticeship Standard.

The programme includes placements across multiple departments to build a broad understanding of the business. Placements are planned to support your development and provide a varied, rewarding experience.

The role of an Apprentice HVAC Technician is a development role towards becoming a HVAC technician. This will involve working with established HVAC technicians both off and on trains to establish failure modes through extensive fault finding as well as rectification work on HVAC units to develop the skills required to become a stand‑alone HVAC Technician.

Academic college studies will be combined with real‑life work‑based experience across our organisation. Your qualification will be completed at West Nottinghamshire College – training will be delivered by block release. The remainder of the time is spent at work in the depot where you will have the opportunity to build and gather evidence of your competence whilst working towards a formal qualification.

Key Responsibilities

• Attend all planned college requirements
• Complete all required College work on time and to standard
• Work in line with Alstom’s Zero Deviation Policy
• Follow all established Alstom depot processes and procedures (e.g., Tool Control, 5S, Line of Route)
• Opportunities may be available to be trained as a Depot Train Driver

What you need to qualify

You will need (or be predicted to have) a minimum of 5 GCSEs of Grade 4 – 9, including Maths, English, and a Science.

We value passion and attitude over experience. That’s why we don’t expect you to have every single skill. Instead, we’ve listed some that we think will help you succeed and grow in this role:

• Understanding the importance of precision and accuracy
• Self‑motivated and able to demonstrate commitment to achieving the apprenticeship standard
• Ability to act as a member of a multi‑disciplined team (with flexibility around team roles), and also able to work on your own initiative where required

Due to the location of the depot, a driving licence is desirable.

Benefits and career development

Join us on a life‑long transformative journey – the rail industry is here to stay, so you can grow and develop new skills and experiences throughout your career.

You’ll also:

• Enjoy stability, challenges and a long‑term career free from boring daily routines
• Collaborate with transverse teams and helpful colleagues
• Contribute to innovative projects
• Steer your career in whatever direction you choose across functions and countries
• Benefit from our investment in your development, through award‑winning learning
• Benefit from a fair and dynamic reward package that recognises your performance and potential, plus comprehensive and competitive social coverage (life, medical, pension)

You don’t need to be a train enthusiast to thrive with us. We guarantee that when you step onto one of our trains with your friends or family, you’ll be proud. If you’re up for the challenge, we’d love to hear from you!

Application process

As part of the application process, you will need to answer a series of mandatory questions; please allocate time in going through and answering them to the best of your ability. The recruitment process includes online tests, assessment centre, competency interview. You will be contacted via email if you are successful at each stage.

We wish you the best of luck for all the steps and look forward to getting to know you!

Equal opportunity statement

Alstom is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive working environment where all our employees are encouraged to reach their full potential, and individual differences are valued and respected. All qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by local law.

As a ‘Disability Confident’ employer, we will interview all disabled job applicants who match the essential criteria of the job description or specification. We will consider flexible working requests for all roles unless operational requirements prevent otherwise.