HR Apprentice

Dandara; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 22,000 - 27,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

£24,785 basic salary

Bonus scheme

Training in HR

33 days holiday

Private Medical Insurance

Employee Assistance Programme - EAP

Health Hero digital doctor

Health Assured Wisdom App

3x salary life assurance

Cycle to Work Scheme

Employer matched pension up to 5%

Flexible benefits

Job summary

Dandara invites applications for an HR Apprentice in Milton Keynes. This structured programme offers rotation through HR Operations, Recruitment, Learning & Development, and Reward, with hands‑on experience and a recognised HR apprenticeship qualification.

No prior HR experience is required, only a proactive, curious mindset and drive to build a long‑term career in HR. You’ll join the Group HR team on a journey from training to practical, real responsibility, aligned with the Level 3 HR Support

Qualifications

• GCSEs at Grade 6 or above are required.
• Level 3/post‑16 qualifications are desirable.
• Previous work experience is beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Participate in HR Operations, Recruitment & Resourcing, Learning & Development, Reward and HR Business Partnering during rotation.
• Support and learn across HR functions with structured development and coaching.

Skills

Attention to detail

Strong communication

Curious mindset

Organised

Professionalism

Education

GCSEs including English Maths & Business Studies

Level 3/post‑16 qualifications desirable

Job description

HR Apprentice – Build Your Career in HR with Dandara

Location: Milton Keynes

Programme: Structured HR Apprenticeship with Rotational Development

Start your HR career with real experience, real responsibility and a recognised qualification.

Are you ambitious, curious and looking for a career where you can work with people, solve problems and make a genuine impact on a business?

At Dandara, we’re offering an exciting opportunity to join our Group HR team as an HR Apprentice. You don't need previous HR experience – we're looking for someone with the potential, attitude and drive to build a successful long-term career in Human Resources.

This isn't an apprenticeship where you'll spend all your time doing basic administration. You'll follow a structured rotational development programme, gaining hands‑on experience across the key areas of a modern HR function while working towards a recognised HR apprenticeship qualification. This role will be aligned with the Level 3 HR Support apprenticeship.

You’ll experience HR Operations, Recruitment & Resourcing, Learning & Development, Reward and HR Business Partnering, giving you the opportunity to discover where your strengths and interests could take you.

What You’ll Learn

HR Operations

You’ll learn how HR supports employees throughout their career with Dandara, from joining the business through to promotions, contractual changes and eventually leaving.

You’ll Gain Experience In

• Offers, contracts and onboarding
• Employee records and HR systems
• Absence, family leave and probation
• HR reporting and people data
• HR policies and procedures
• Confidentiality, compliance and data protection

You’ll quickly understand why accuracy and attention to detail really matter when you’re dealing with people’s careers and personal information.

Recruitment & Resourcing

Working alongside our Recruitment team, you’ll see how we attract and hire talented people across Dandara.

You’ll Gain Exposure To

• Advertising vacancies and attracting candidates
• Our Teamtailor recruitment system
• Candidate screening and selection
• Interviews and assessment
• Recruitment campaigns
• Candidate experience
• Recruitment data and reporting
• Understanding recruitment costs and agency spend

As your confidence and capability develop, you’ll have opportunities to become more actively involved in interviews and recruitment activities.

Learning & Development

You’ll see how Dandara develops its people and prepares future leaders.

You’ll Gain Experience Of

• Coordinating training and development
• Leadership development
• Early careers programmes
• Career pathways
• Succession and talent planning
• Our Kallidus learning platform
• Measuring the effectiveness of learning

You’ll learn how developing people’s skills can directly improve business performance.

HR Business Partnering

As you progress through the programme, you’ll gain exposure to the more advisory and commercial side of HR.

You’ll Shadow Experienced HR Professionals And Learn About

• Employee relations
• Performance and attendance
• Organisational change
• Workforce planning
• Employment policies and principles
• Advising and supporting managers
• Using judgement to solve people‑related problems

You’ll also gain exposure to Reward, Benefits and Payroll, helping you understand how the different elements of HR fit together.

What we’re looking for

We’re not looking for someone who already knows everything about HR. We’ll teach you that.

We’re looking for someone with the potential to learn quickly and the ambition to make something of the opportunity.

You’ll Ideally Be

• Genuinely interested in developing a professional career in HR
• Ambitious, motivated and keen to progress
• Curious – someone who wants to understand why, not just what
• Confident enough to ask questions and contribute ideas
• Resilient and able to learn from feedback and mistakes
• Highly organised with excellent attention to detail
• A strong written and verbal communicator
• Comfortable working with numbers, data and technology
• Professional and trustworthy with confidential information
• Adaptable and comfortable working with different people and teams

You’ll also need to understand that building a successful career means mastering the fundamentals. Some of your work will be administrative, particularly at the beginning, and we’ll expect you to approach those responsibilities with the same enthusiasm and professionalism as the more exciting projects.

No previous HR experience is required. Potential, attitude and capability matter more to us than previous exposure to HR.

Qualifications

We’re looking for a strong general standard of education and evidence of your ability to learn and develop.

You’ll Have

• GCSEs at Grade 6 or above, including English, Maths & Business Studies
• Level 3/post‑16 qualifications are desirable
• Previous work experience, whether part‑time, full‑time, voluntary or through work placements, would also be beneficial

Where could this take you?

Our aim is to develop someone who can build a long‑term career within HR.

Throughout your apprenticeship, you’ll receive practical experience, structured development, feedback and increasing responsibility as your capability grows.

By the end of the programme, you’ll have gained experience across several different HR specialisms and completed a recognised HR apprenticeship qualification.

Depending on your performance, strengths, interests and future opportunities within Dandara, your career could ultimately develop into areas such as:

HR Operations | Recruitment & Resourcing | Learning & Development | Reward | HR Business Partnering

Progression isn’t automatic – you’ll need to earn it through your performance, development and commitment. But for someone with the right attitude and ambition, this apprenticeship provides an excellent platform from which to build a professional HR career.

What’s in it for you?

• £24,785 basic salary
• Bonus Scheme
• Training in HR
• 33 days holiday (inclusive of bank holidays)
• Private Medical Insurance
• Employee Assistance Programme - EAP
• Health Hero digital doctor - 24 hr virtual help and appointments
• Health Assured Wisdom App
• 3x salary life assurance (paid option to increase to x4)
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Employer matched pension scheme of up to 5%
• Flexible benefits including shopping vouchers, airport parking and reduced gym membership

No Agencies please.

Founded in 1988 on the Isle of Man, Dandara is the Housebuilding division of Dandara Group. It has been creating beautiful homes for over 30 years, providing our customers with an exceptional level of service all the way through the process. It’s part of the reason why we are one of the UK’s most respected private housebuilders, with our portfolio now stretching across the nation.