Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) 
Salary: £19,514 per annum (rising annually throughout the apprenticeship)
Contract Type: Fixed-Term, 24 months 
Hours: Full-time, 37 hours 
Location:  Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Campus, Didcot, OX11 0QX
Closing Date: Sunday, 2nd February 2026
Interview Date: Feb 2026 / Mar 2026 
Start Date: September 2026 

Are you a motivated individual who can an demonstrate an excellent customer service? Join us as an apprentice Information Assistant working within the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) library services.  

You’ll be part of the Open Science team helping to deliver a range of library and information services, as well as, supporting open research practices, such as open access publishing of journal articles and data sharing, through the development and operation of the institutional repositories. 

About an Apprenticeship at STFC

We’re looking for enthusiastic and motivated individuals ready to develop their skills through formal training and hands-on experience. As an apprentice, you’ll gain real-world experience, build technical and professional skills, and contribute to cutting-edge research and innovation in a dynamic, supportive environment.  

You’ll be fully supported throughout the programme with regular check-ins from a dedicated Apprenticeship Coordinator, structured training, practical experience, and mentorship from industry professionals. Plus, you’ll have access to workshops, a peer network, and career development support, helping you feel confident and prepared for new challenges.  

Why join the Open Science Team at STFC?

You would be part of the Open Science team, which works collaboratively across STFC, UKRI and internationally to define policies, develop and deploy tools and practices to support STFC research and researchers to realise the benefits of open science, making scientific research openly available, accessible and reusable. 

We are a cross-site team with staff based at both the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) in Oxfordshire and the Daresbury Laboratory (DL) in Cheshire. This position will be based at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire and may require occasional travel, within the UK, to attend meeting, events and training. 

You can find out more about the Open Science team and the work we do on the STFC Scientific Computing website:  https://www.sc.stfc.ac.uk/research-and-expertise/open-science/ 

Qualifications gained  

Level 3 Library, information and archive services assistant (LIAS) 

Library, information and archive services assistant / Skills England 

What you’ll learn: 

• understand the needs of people using information in all its formats including digital (e.g. ebooks, video files, electronic documents, online content) and analogue/physical (e.g. collections, books, journals, newspapers, DVDs/CDs etc) 
• organize and manage those information resources, including arranging and displaying the resources; marketing and promoting the resources; and providing access to the resources 
• provide a range of services, such as library, archive, knowledge, customer services, learning support, etc, that help people to use and value the resources available. 

Training provider

Westminster adult education service: Level 3 Library, Information and Archive Services Assistant - Westminster Adult Education Service (WAES) 

Delivery of training will take place 1 day per month over a 13-month period at 1 of the 3 designated centres in London.   

What You’ll Be Doing – Day-to-day responsibilities  

Your responsibilities will be wide ranging and tailored to support the requirements of the apprenticeship standard. Examples of the work include but are not limited to:  

• Supporting the marketing and promotion of services and resources (preparing and updating guidance documents, intranet pages, display screens) 
• Contributing to the submission of materials into the publication and data repositories, updating metadata and quality checking of records.  
• Being the first point of contact for some services, including time on the library enquiry desk, answering a range of enquiries (in person and via email) and triaging more complex enquiries to the relevant members of the team.  
• Contributing to service development through active engagement in team meetings and liaising with library users. 

Entry Requirements

The below criteria will be scored during Shortlisting (S), Interview (I) or both (S&I).

We are looking for the following:

Essential

• GCSEs in Maths, English and Science (Grade 4/C or above) (S)
• An awareness of basic health and safety (I) 
• Enthusiastic and motivated to learn, both in the workplace and through formal training (I)
• Interest in working in a scientific library and information environment (S&I) 
• Ability to deliver an excellent customer service (S&I) 
• Ability to work with a range of colleagues at all levels within the organisation (S&I) 
• Ability to work to a high degree of accuracy with attention to detail and ability to follow detailed instructions (S&I) 
• Self-motivated and experience in managing time and priorities (S&I) 

Desirable  

• Further academic qualifications e.g. A levels, BTEC or Undergraduate Degree (S) 
• Experience of using different tools to find information e.g catalogues, databases, web resources (I) 
   

Important Information

• To complete the apprenticeship, you will need to evidence passes at 9-4 or A*-C in GCSE (or equivalent) Maths and English. For those sitting their GSCEs in Summer 2026, we would need evidence of your predicted grades.
• When applying for an apprenticeship, there is a set residency eligibility criteria that must be met by the applicant. To check your eligibility please click here.
• The training provider will also ask you to complete an initial assessment during the application process. If you already have a qualification in this subject area or similar please include, as an attachment, your transcript outlining the grade/s achieved and modules covered.  By applying for this apprenticeship, you are giving permission for your details to be shared with the relevant training provider.

We will be in touch after the closing date, however, please reach out on [email protected] if you have any questions. 

Employee Benefits

• Your salary will increase annually as you progress through your apprenticeship, in line with policy.
• 30 days holiday (in addition to 10.5 bank holidays and privilege days).
• Flexible working hours.
• An excellent defined average salary pension scheme.
• Easily accessible public transport links/ free parking.
• Excellent learning and development opportunities.
• Cycle to work scheme.

For a list of our full benefits, please visit here.

As this job does not fulfil the UK Government minimum criterion for obtaining sponsored migrant worker status we will be unable to apply for sponsorship for anyone not eligible to work in the UK. At interview, all shortlisted candidates are required to bring with them identification documents and original documents that prove they hold or can obtain the right to work in the UK. You can check your eligibility here: https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y 

How to apply 

Part of our application process involves submitting your CV and a cover letter. Your cover letter should address your suitability for the opportunity based how you meet each essential criteria stated in this advert. 

Please note that we hold the right to close this vacancy early if a sufficient number of applications have been received.  

We ask some of the biggest questions in the universe, to answer some of the biggest challenges in the world. Together, our scientists, technologists, engineers and business support team explore the unknown across every field you could think of. And they turn what they find into work that changes the world around us. 

What could you achieve with the world-leading facilities and experts of one of Europe's largest research organisations by your side? Join us and discover what's possible! 

UKRI is an organisation that brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UK. Together, we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision ensuring the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation.

Supporting some of the world’s most exciting and challenging research projects, we develop and operate some of the most remarkable scientific facilities in the world. We are pushing the frontiers of human knowledge through fundamental research and delivering benefits for UK society and the economy through world-class research, skills and business-led innovation.

More information can be found at www.ukri.org.

Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme.  For more details, visit benefits of working for UKRI.

How we support EDI in the workforce

At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit ‘How we support EDI in the workforce’.

Disability Confident Employer

As users of the disability confident scheme, any candidate who opts into the scheme and best meets the essential criteria, will be shortlisted for interview. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

How to apply

Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the ‘experience’ section of the application.

UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion – a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us.

The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role.  UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment.