Bus Driver Apprenticeship

**Bus driver apprenticeship**

Tourists flying in and out of Heathrow Airport. Rugby fans lining the stands at Twickenham. Weekenders soaking up the sun in Trafalgar Square.

London’s fleet of buses is the red line connecting all these dots. And in each bus is a driver making sure people get where they want to go.

We’re nothing without our drivers. So we’re looking for a new generation of future superstars to join our apprenticeship scheme.

**The apprenticeship**

We’ll give you on-the-job training (which is 80% driving, 20% learning through attending training workshops). You’ll spend roughly 6 weeks learning the ropes in our Battersea depot, and after that you’ll get straight out on the road for the rest of the 14-month programme.

During the apprenticeship you’ll work shifts for at least 38 hours a week. That includes early mornings and late nights, and weekends and bank holidays.

Then, when you reach the finish line, you’ll get an apprenticeship certificate and be able to take ‘trainee’ out of your job title.

**Who we are**

We’re the team behind hundreds of buses zipping across London, with over 150 million customers a year. We couldn’t do it without our drivers - so we offer some of the best salaries and benefits in the business.

**About you**

You’ll need to:

- be 18 years old or over
- work shifts for at least 38 hours a week, including weekends and bank holidays
- have lived in the UK or EEA for at least three years and have a UK bank account and valid Right to Work documents
- have a full UK driving licence (category B) with at least a year’s experience driving in the UK
- live close enough to our Southall depot to be able to get there quickly, no matter the time of day or night
- have an excellent driving history - that means you will have no more than six penalty points, and won’t have committed any drink driving offences in the last five years
- have a good standard of Maths and English, and be able to communicate well, both in person and in writing.
- be able to use a computer.

You’ll also:

- be one of those above-and-beyond types, keeping an eye on your passengers’ health and safety and making sure your vehicle’s always in good condition
- be willing to learn, with a positive attitude to your own development and training
- have an eye for detail
- have a ‘right first time’ attitude.

**Where you’ll work**

After about 6 weeks at our Battersea depot, we’ll take your home address into account and usually, and the nearest garage where we’re short of drivers will become your new depot. Wherever that is, you’ll need to be able to get there quickly any time of day or night, and ideally without using a car (our car parks can get seriously busy).

**The benefits**

As part of your apprenticeship, you’ll get:

- an hourly rate of at least £11.05 (while you’re training) and £13.09 when you finish your apprenticeship
- a level 2 passenger transport apprenticeship qualification
- training for your Driver Certificate of Professional Competence card (CPC)
- free theory and practical driving tests
- full training for the routes and services you will be driving.

**What you’ll get**

Working for us means you get lots of benefits on top of your salary, including:

- free travel on all TfL routes for you and a friend or family member (once you’ve worked with us for three months)
- training and development
- an annual safe driving bonus, and high street vouchers for good performance
- access to our contributory pension scheme - you put in 5% of your salary each month and we’ll add 3% on top
- life insurance (if you sign up to the pension scheme)
- salary sacrifice benefits - you can choose to get things like a new laptop, smart watch, TV or phone in return for slightly less pay
- discounts from shops and retailers - including Apple, Adidas, Nike, Vue, Odeon, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons and more
- eye test vouchers
- free help from our employee assistance programme to support you personally and at work
- opportunities to increase your income through our annual safe driving bonus, our refer a friend scheme and by being awarded our golden tickets for excellent driving and customer service

**Everybody’s welcome**

We’re working hard to make sure our workforce is a true representation of society itself. That means we take a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination and encourage diversity and inclusion throughout our business.