Cultural Learning & Participation Officer Apprentice (Level 3)

Are you passionate about theatre creativity and working with children young people and communities

This is an exciting opportunity to begin your career in arts participation while working towards a Level 3 Cultural Learning and Participation Officer Apprenticeship.

As part of Theatre Royal Plymouths Creative Communities team youll gain practical experience supporting and delivering a wide range of creative projects in schools community settings and across our own programmes. Youll work alongside experienced theatre practitioners and learn through hands-on experience mentoring observation professional training and reflective practice.

No two days are the same and throughout your apprenticeship youll have the opportunity to develop your confidence build new skills and make a real difference through the work you do.

Our Creative Communities team works with children young people schools and communities across Plymouth and beyond creating opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to explore creativity develop confidence and experience the arts in meaningful ways.

If youre looking to begin a career where no two days are the same and where you can make a real difference through creativity this apprenticeship is a great place to start.

About the apprenticeship

As part of your employment youll complete the Level 3 Cultural Learning and Participation Officer Apprenticeship Standard delivered by TRPs chosen provider.

Throughout your apprenticeship youll work towards achieving the knowledge skills and behaviours set out within the apprenticeship standard. Your day-to-day role has been designed to give you the opportunity to develop these through practical experience structured learning and support from experienced colleagues.

The apprenticeship combines workplace learning with dedicated training from the apprenticeship provider helping you build the skills and confidence needed for a career in cultural learning and participation.

What youll be doing

Working as part of the Creative Communities team youll:

• Assist with the delivery of weekly workshops across our programme working with children young people and community groups in a variety of settings.
• Support the delivery of our holiday programmes.
• Work alongside experienced theatre practitioners across a wide range of creative projects.
• Support the administration of Young Company and other Creative Communities projects including parent and carer communication email correspondence registers and preparing spaces for activity.
• Assist with planning monitoring and evaluating projects across the department.
• Help deliver workshops within schools and education settings.
• Support festivals and events including NT Connections and Playhouse.
• Lead tours of Theatre Royal Plymouth and TR2 for schools and community groups.
• Work with the Creative Communities team to support performance opportunities for Young Company and other projects.
• Become a licensed Chaperone to support theatre visits and performances.
• Complete safeguarding and other relevant training to help create a safe welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone taking part.

This is a developmental role so as you progress through your apprenticeship working through the apprenticeship standards youll gradually take on more responsibility including opportunities to lead activities and projects with the support of the team.

The responsibilities listed above arent exhaustive and may develop as the needs of the department and organisation change.

What were looking for

Were looking for someone who is enthusiastic organised creative and keen to learn.

Essential

• A genuine interest in theatre drama and working with children young people and communities.
• Strong communication skills both written and verbal with the ability to communicate confidently with a wide range of people including young people parents carers and education professionals.
• A willingness to learn and develop your skills in creative facilitation and professional development in your chosen art form
• The ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Good organisational and time management skills.
• The ability to take responsibility for your work and meet deadlines.
• Good administrative skills and the ability to manage a range of projects at the same time.
• A professional positive and reliable approach.
• Flexibility to work occasional evenings and weekends.

Desirable

• Experience of arts engagement i.e. youth theatre community arts or working in an education setting.
• Experience of creating resources to support learning.
• Practical knowledge of IT and Office based systems
• A First Aid qualification.
• DBS Update Service membership.
• A full UK driving licence.

What youll gain

This apprenticeship is designed to give you the skills knowledge and experience to begin a career in cultural learning and participation.

Youll receive:

• A nationally recognised Level 3 Cultural Learning and Participation Officer Apprenticeship.
• Support and mentoring from experienced members of the Creative Communities team.
• Practical experience delivering projects with children young people and communities.
• Opportunities to work alongside professional artists theatre practitioners and partner organisations.
• Training in safeguarding and other areas to support your professional development.
• Experience of working within one of the UKs leading regional theatres.

Learning and development

As part of the apprenticeship youll take part in regular learning with the apprenticeship provider alongside your day-to-day role. This will include structured learning workplace learning and independent study helping you develop the knowledge skills and behaviours needed to successfully complete your apprenticeship.

Attendance at learning sessions forms part of your contracted working hours and is an essential part of the apprenticeship programme.

Additional information

This is a fixed-term apprenticeship from September 2026to July 2028 working 32 hours per week over five days.

Due to the nature of the role some evening and weekend working will be required.

Applicants must be 18 years or over.

The successful applicant will be required to complete the Level 3 Cultural Learning and Participation Officer Apprenticeship as part of their may still be eligible to apply if your existing qualification is in a different subject area and the apprenticeship will provide you with new knowledge skills and behaviours.

As this role involves working with children and young people appointment will be subject to a satisfactory Enhanced DBS check and other pre-employment checks.

This apprenticeship is a fixed-term opportunity ending in July completion of the apprenticeship does not guarantee a permanent role with Theatre Royal Plymouth. However should suitable opportunities arise wed encourage you to apply.

Interested in finding out more

If youd like to learn more about the Cultural Learning & Participation Officer Apprenticeship you can watch our pre-recorded webinar here: covers the role the apprenticeship programme and what you can expect from working at Theatre Royal is a great opportunity to find out more about the role andlearn about the apprenticeship programme before submitting your application.

Were here to talk! Were available to speak to you before you make your application so if youre not quite sure if your skills match the role want to talk about how flexible working could support you or just check any of the details in this document please do email us on with subject line Cultural Learning & Participation Officer Apprentice to arrange a chat.

As the largest and most well-attended regional producing theatre in the UK we present diverse productions on our three stages: The Lyric The Drum and The Lab. With a regional audience of over 2.1 million we employ over 300 dedicated staff including leading artists and craftspeople and attract over 300000 annual audience members.

Theatre Royal Plymouth is a registered charity inspiring a lifetime of creativity for audiences artists and participants throughout Plymouth and the wider region. As the principal home of performing arts in the South West we engage and inspire many communities creating memorable experiences for people from all backgrounds.

We do this by creating and presenting a breadth of shows on a range of scales with their extensive creative engagement programmes by embracing the vitality of new talent and supporting emerging and established artists and by collaborating with a range of partners to provide dynamic cultural leadership for the City of Plymouth.

Inclusion & Diversity
We are committed to cultivating a culture of inclusion at TRP with a workforce participants and audiences that reflect the diversity of the communities we serve.

The collective power of each team members life experiences knowledge innovation self-expression and talent creates the very best environment for us to achieve our ambitions and lead the sector.

In recruiting for our team we recognise the unique contributions that you can bring in terms of education opinions culture ethnicity race sex gender identity and expression nation of origin age languages spoken colour religion disability sexual orientation and beliefs.