Apprenticeship FAQs

We offer apprenticeships for those wanting to join our Accountancy, Audit and Tax teams. Visit our careers page to find out which roles we are currently recruiting for.

This varies from year to year, but we usually take on between 5 and 10 apprenticeships every year, so you’ll always have other students around to help support you.

Each of our apprenticeship schemes has a different focus. If you join our Business Advisory programme, for example, you’ll learn how to advise clients on their accounting systems and controls, how to improve systems and the best measures to reduce risk. Whereas, in Audit, you’re more likely to be reviewing and testing the financial information of the business to ensure that we can sign off an independent assessment of the organisation’s financial records and procedures. In Tax, as you’d expect, you’ll become your clients’ expert in all things tax-related.

All of our projects are about problem-solving, which we think happens best when we work collaboratively. Throughout your apprenticeship and entire career, you’ll connect with colleagues across different teams, to tackle the trickiest challenges for our clients.

With more projects focused on technology and the latest digital developments, we approach every client with a clear eye on the future. It’s that vision that enables us to help our clients make some of their biggest decisions.

You’ll get to work with, and learn from, a number of colleagues, discover how to build trust with clients, and become an expert in your field.

We are open to all candidates who meet the essential requirements, such as the right to work in the UK and eligibility for our programmes. We take a holistic approach to assessment, looking at a range of factors, including your academic performance, your ability to demonstrate the behaviours we are looking for, and your fit with our brand, values, and culture. We are looking for well-rounded candidates who are passionate about making a difference and who are willing to put in the hard work to succeed.

Ideally you will have achieved or be predicted to achieve:

• 2-3 A levels at grades A*-C

You will also be asked to complete a timed aptitude test online which consists of three categories: vocabulary, comprehension, and numeracy.

As a trainee, you will be studying for a professional qualification. It is important that you are able to balance your studies with your client work. This will be a challenging few years, but being professionally qualified will open many doors and fast-track your career as an associate.

Here are some of the things we are looking for in a candidate:

• Academic excellence
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Problem-solving and analytical skills
• Strong work ethic
• Passion for making a difference

If you think you have what it takes to be a successful trainee, we encourage you to apply. We look forward to hearing from you!

Yes, you are welcome to make more than one application to our available apprenticeships – please just make it clear which role you are applying for in your application.

Our apprenticeships are always popular, so it’s best to apply as early as possible. You can start applying from October and usually invite people in for interviews in November. All of our live vacancies are available to view on our Careers page.

Scrutton Bland is an equal opportunities employer which means we do not to discriminate against any employee or job applicant because of race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, physical or mental disability, or age.

There is an opportunity for you to share this with us when we call you to discuss your application with us. If you would like to let us know in advance, please email careers@scruttonbland.co.uk 

Scrutton Bland is a member of Nexia International, a leading worldwide network of accounting and financial consulting firms. Our membership means that we can act for clients located in the UK who need to transact internationally as well as for those overseas clients looking to set up a business in the UK.

This means that we are part of a dynamic global network and have opportunities to work with international firms and deliver our local expertise, with a global reach. There also opportunities for our people to carry out secondments and get work experience at other network firms.

We’re a very friendly firm, with many opportunities to get involved in social events. We have a social committee with people from across all departments and all offices who meet regularly and organise events of all kinds, ranging from theatre trips, Christmas shopping trips, go-karting and regular team events or drinks. At Scrutton Bland, everyone’s invited.

Yes. This is a permanent job that’s all about progression. Once you show us how talented and dedicated you are, you’re welcome to stay on in your team or move to a different area of our business. You’ll have lots of options. The scheme is aimed at giving you a rounded professional experience and the confidence to go wherever you want to take your career.

Being part of Scrutton Bland means being part of the community around us. As a business and group of individuals who live and work locally, we enjoy supporting local charities and regularly take part in fundraising and volunteering for local causes. We positively encourage you to volunteer and get involved in the local community. We even set up the Scrutton Bland Foundation CIC, a salary-based charitable giving scheme where staff can donate on a monthly basis directly from their salaries and the total amount is then matched by our Partners before being donated to local charities. This allows us to donate to a variety of charitable causes and engage in numerous fundraising and volunteering activities. As a member of the foundation you’ll have the opportunity to volunteer a day a year for a local cause – it’s your chance to get out of the office and make a difference.

Our CSR vision is simple: to be our community’s most responsible employer by doing the right thing

Work/life balance at Scrutton Bland is important. You won’t be expected to always work long hours or overtime, but you may be asked to at certain times of the year, such as financial year ends. In some teams there’s a possibility to claim back time off in lieu for these additional hours. You can also buy up to five days additional holiday each year through our employee benefits scheme.

Yes, we want you to pass your exams first time, so we give you paid study leave to attend all your classes. You’ll also be able to take some paid revision days, more information about this will be included within your training contract.

You’ll receive lots of support. You’ll get paid while attending college, and we will also cover the cost of tuition, books, examination and entry fees.

You’ll also receive support on a day-to-day basis from colleagues, managers and other students from across the business.

We want to work with you to pass your exams on the first attempt, but appreciate that you may have a bad day – we’ll sit down and talk through the results through with you and work together to discuss options going forward.

You’ll travel to clients and sometimes need to stay away. The amount this happens varies depending on the department and clients you are working on. You need be prepared to be away from home for some periods of time, ranging from a day to several weeks depending on the assignment.

Yes, you have the opportunity to be open and honest about your desired career path and we will work with you to try and make these happen. As we are part of Nexia International you make also have the opportunity to take a secondment with one of the other network firms.

Our apprenticeships offer a great salary, they’re competitive and we benchmark against the wider industry regularly.

As an apprentice your salary will be reviewed when you pass exams and complete apprenticeship levels so you’ll always be rewarded for your efforts. Your pay will be based your performance in your role as well as exam passes.

Yes, we offer a number of voluntary and paid benefits as part of your employment with Scrutton Bland. More information about our benefits can be found on our Benefits page.

All employees have 36 days annual leave each year. This includes bank holidays and 3 christmas closing days. You will also have the opportunity to purchase up to an additional 5 days holiday throughout employee benefits programme.

Our apprenticeships are all about learning and development. As well as time off to revise for your professional qualifications, there are focused classroom study and e-learning opportunities. You’ll have 1:1 coaching and designated appraisers, mentors and buddies to support you at work. You’ll also receive the technical and skills training you’ll need to progress your career further down the line, not to mention the invaluable experience of working on live projects.

As you’d expect, the specific training you’ll get depends on the kind of role you choose. We’ll do everything we can to help you succeed in your field. After all, it’s our expertise that our clients pay for.

We are an inclusive employer, and want to ensure that any individual is not prevented from potentially working with us because of financial restraints. We provide individualised support to help overcome any barriers, this could be in the form of an initial clothing allowance, support for lunch and travel expenses in your first month with us or other support. We treat this information confidentially so your colleagues and others will not be aware of this support. We respect your right to dignity and privacy.