2025 Finance Apprentice - Level 2 Accountant Assistant

Location: Cheadle, United Kingdom

Thales people provide armed forces customers with operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defence mission systems solutions at land, sea, and air. Our platforms extend across the battlespace including Above and Sonar, Electronic Combat, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

2025 Finance Apprentice - Level 2 Accountant Assistant

Start Date: 01 September 2025

Salary: £16,000 (age 16-19), £21,000 (age 19+) per annum

Location: Cheadle

Employee type: Permanent

Working Schedule: Monday – Friday, 37 hours a week (8 hours Monday – Thursday, 5 hours Friday)

Are you an individual who is proactive with a passion for getting into the detail? We have an exciting opportunity to join our corporate team based in Cheadle. This role is a rare chance for a highly motivated individual to take on a role that has excellent career progression opportunities within Thales.

What the role has to offer:

• Earn while you learn

• Job specific training experience

• Recognised qualifications

• Permanent role from day one

• Great opportunity to gain experience and further your career in Finance

• Operate in a visible role with an opportunity to add value from the early stages

We have an exciting opportunity to join a Finance Apprenticeship within our UK business. We have opportunities within Corporate and our Thales UK business lines.

You can expect to be involved in a wide range of activities, gaining significant exposure to the business and building a broad professional network. Key responsibilities will vary depending on which team you are sitting within, but may include:

• Opportunity to learn through experience, working on meaningful activities, implement best practice and shape the role

• Opportunity to engage with multiple stakeholders across the team

• Opportunity to work in a fast paced, exciting and dynamic environment

• Ability to drive continuous improvement

• Liaising with various stakeholders to understand, challenge and report the overheads and headcount of the business

• Providing accurate, timely and reliable overhead and cost information, and analysis to senior management

• Utilizing Thales tools to develop internal reporting and ensure consistency across the UK

• Supporting cost centre reviews

• Assisting in the budgeting cycle where required

• Managing data cleanse activities including balance sheet reconciliation

• Supporting projects in maintaining forecast invoicing dates and improving cash forecasting

• Supporting Project Managers and Business Controllers in timely cost transfers

• Assisting in Project Closure activities

• Ad hoc tasks, reporting and analysis as required by Financial Controller/Director

• Supporting preparation and distribution of monthly financial results, ensuring tight deadlines are achieved

• Supporting monthly overhead, headcount and DLU (Direct Labour Utilisation) reviews

• Supporting the preparation and review of monthly Cost By Nature (CBN) and Functional Cost Report (FCR) reports, including commentary and analysis as may be requested by Group, UK or business management

• Support the overhead multi-year budget (MYB) process

• Support the overhead reforecasting process

• Provide information on headcount evolution

• Provide specific analytical reports to cost centre managers

• Support the preparation and posting of journal vouchers, including accruals, prepayments, corrections etc

Apprentice Programme

You will start by enrolling onto a Level 2 Accountant Assistant Apprenticeship with our award winning training partner. Delivered via a virtual delivery model over 15 months, the apprenticeship will introduce you to day-to-day accounting activities and will help you to build the competence to deliver these successfully. On completion of the programme, you will achieve an AAT Level 2 Diploma in Accounting.

For this level of role it is expected that you will progress onto higher level learning including the Level 3 Assistant Accountant Apprenticeship (18 months) and the Level 4 Professional Accountant Apprenticeship (17 months) to achieve your AAT qualifications.

Requirements:

• 5 GCSE’s 9-4 (A-C), including English and Maths.

Right to Work in the UK for the duration of the programme.

Benefits

• 201 hours annual leave (plus a company day and bank holidays)

• Company Pension

• Health Care Cash Plan

• Life Insurance

• Discount Portal

• Performance-related pay uplifts

• 80 Hours Volunteering (first two years)

Closing date: Our applications will close at 11.59pm on Sunday 16 February 2025, this is the only time we will be accepting applications this year. Please note, we will be in contact by the end of February 2025 with details of next steps.

Please note, assessment centres for shortlisted candidates will be held between February and May 2025 Induction week for all Graduate and Apprentices will take place from Monday 01 September until Friday 05 September 2025.

Recruitment Process:

For further information on our Early Careers recruitment process or to speak to a member of the Early Careers Team or a Graduate or Apprentice, please visit Thales Future Talent - Connectr.

Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires you to be a sole British National from birth and achieve Security Clearance (SC) without any caveats. It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment. Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance.

To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks. As part of the vetting process you will be asked to provide evidence of your identity, eligibility to work in the UK, time spent abroad over the last 5 years, as well as employment and/or educational history.

For further details of the evidence required to apply for security clearance please follow this link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.

Thales is an equal opportunities employer and diversity and inclusion are integral to the success of Thales.

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment, if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!

Location: Cheadle, GB

Posted Date: 11/18/2024