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Apprentice Laboratory & Facilities Assistant
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About the Role
You will work as an Apprentice Laboratory & Facilities Assistant, working across the RDM Division of Cardiovascular Medicine to assist Laboratory/Operations Managers and Facilities Teams in the safe and smooth running of the department’s scientific and clinical research areas.
Wage: £26,686 a year
Minimum wage rates: opens in new tab
The University of Oxford offers an attractive range of competitive benefits available to all staff for both work and personal life: https://www.ox.ac.uk/about/jobs/working-here
Training course: Laboratory technician (level 3)
Hours: Core working hours are 10am to 4pm, with precise working hours to be agreed (e.g. 9am-5pm, 10am-6pm). 36 hours 30 minutes a week
Start date: Monday 4 January 2027
Duration: 2 years
Positions available: 1
What You'll Do
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
- Overseeing laboratory housekeeping, following relevant Health and Safety procedures to maintain a clean, tidy and safe working environment.
- Distributing incoming goods to end users in research laboratories and maintaining shared stocks of chemicals and consumables.
- Learning to manage disposal of hazardous chemical waste.
- Conducting regular visual inspections, identifying and reporting faults and hazards to Laboratory and Operations Managers, and requesting minor repairs (e.g. via the University’s PLANON system).
- Directly carrying out routine maintenance and cleaning of scientific equipment (e.g. centrifuges, ULT freezers) and supervising external contractors (e.g. service engineers).
- Assisting with maintenance of laboratory and facilities administration records, including asset registers, and calibration/service schedules; to include learning facilities management software and digital reporting tools, e.g. PLANON.
- Undertaking relevant training on, and keeping up to date with, Good Laboratory Practice, laboratory and clinical Health and Safety, HASAWA, COSHH and other relevant regulations.
- Assisting with safety inspections, fire alarm tests, emergency lighting checks, and evacuation drills.
- Liaising with departmental colleagues, Facilities Teams, external contractors, and other stakeholders to share information and ensure service standards are maintained.
Where You'll Work
John Radcliffe Hospital
Headington
Oxford
OX3 9DU
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider: CSR SCIENTIFIC TRAINING LIMITED
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Training course: Laboratory technician (level 3)
Understanding apprenticeship levels: opens in new tab
What You'll Learn
- Comply with health and safety policies and procedures including HASWA, COSHH, risk assessments, use of personal protective equipment (PPE), manual handling, emergency procedures.
- Maintain excellent housekeeping, in accordance with organisation Standard Procedures
- Order and control stocks of laboratory materials where required
- Identify, organise and use resources effectively to complete tasks applying the concepts of resource efficiency e.g energy, water and waste
- Adhere to internal and external regulatory requirements e.g. GLP, GMP, GDP
- Prepare for, and perform, laboratory experiments, tests or tasks following any specified methodologies to provide reliable, accurate data e.g. weighing, pipetting, filtering, spectroscopic techniques, chromatography techniques
- Demonstrate technical competence in the use of specified instruments and equipment
- Report faults and seek diagnostic advice to maintain equipment in good working order, including calibration where required
- Complete documentation proficiently
- Keep accurate records of laboratory work undertaken and results
- Contribute to the preparation of reports.
- Use simple statistical techniques for data presentation and evaluation e. g calculation of median and standard deviation, production of graphs
- Demonstrate problem solving techniques including identification of sources of error and how they can be reduced e.g. human error
- Use standard software packages and applications e.g. Microsoft Office suite
- Use Laboratory Information Management systems to support their work
- Address non-routine problems with samples and instrumentation, within defined areas
- Identify relevant information from scientific sources e.g. supervisors, literature etc. in order to contribute to solutions
- Participate in continuous performance improvement of systems and processes relevant to the work environment e.g. workplace organisation techniques, accreditation (e.g. ISO, UKAS) and proficiency testing.
- Evaluate data, recognise and call attention to anomalous or unusual results
Training Schedule
You will undertake a Level 3 Laboratory Technician Apprenticeship with an Ofsted rated 'Outstanding' training provider, CSR Scientific Training, which will include:
- Fully recognised apprenticeship qualification - Level 3 Laboratory Technician
- On-the-job competency training
- Theoretical knowledge - BTEC Level 3 Applied Science or Level 4 HNC (depending on prior attainment)
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The majority of your learning will be completed online once a week with some face-to-face practical sessions/exams in Birmingham (if BTEC or HNC is included).
Upon successful completion, apprentices can apply for professional registration as a Registered Science Technician, RSciTech, with either the Institute of Physics, Royal Society of Chemistry or Royal Society of Biology.
Requirements
Essential qualifications
- GCSE in:
- Any / Other Subject (grade 4/C or above)
- Any / Other Subject (grade 4/C or above)
- English (grade 4/C or above)
- Maths (grade 4/C or above)
- Science (grade 4/C or above)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- IT skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Customer care skills
- Problem solving skills
- Administrative skills
- Number skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Initiative
- Non judgemental
- Patience
- Physical fitness
Other requirements
To give yourself the best chance, please ensure your application is genuine and written in your own words. Applications created with AI tools will not be accepted.
About This Employer
The Radcliffe Department of Medicine (RDM) within the Medical Sciences Division is one of the largest departments in the University of Oxford. RDM has been delivering outstanding and impactful multi-disciplinary research since its formation in 2012. RDM’s vision is to support a longer, healthier life for all. Our mission is to improve health through cross-disciplinary research to understand shared mechanisms of disease and to accelerate the transition from scientific discovery to clinical care. See our website for more details https://www.rdm.ox.ac.uk/about (opens in new tab)
After This Apprenticeship
Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay opens in new tab.
People completing similar apprenticeships usually progress to a Laboratory, Facilities and/or Safety Management role either within the University of Oxford (where there are defined career paths for such roles), within other higher education institutions or in industrial settings
Ask a Question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
CSR SCIENTIFIC TRAINING LIMITED
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000054883.
Apply Now
Closes in 20 days (Tuesday 13 October 2026 at 11:59pm)
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