Manager – Apprenticeships and Professional Skills

Location: 3 days a week at The VHQ, Crawley
Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday. Flexible working – up to
Contract: Permanent
Salary: Competitive
Closing date: 26th September 2025

At Virgin Atlantic, we believe our people are the heart of our success. Our apprenticeship programmes are a vital part of shaping our future – attracting, developing, and nurturing talent at all levels of the business. As Manager – Apprenticeship Development, you’ll take the lead in shaping and delivering our apprenticeship portfolio, ensuring we build the skills needed today and for tomorrow. You’ll be the driving force behind our “Levy first” approach, maximising levy utilisation to create real impact – from developing future leaders to unlocking opportunities for internal talent. This is your chance to influence the skills agenda in aviation, both within Virgin Atlantic and across our industry.

• Lead the design, delivery, and growth of our apprenticeship portfolio, ensuring alignment with our skills strategy and future talent needs
• Partner with People Partners and Learning teams, and business leaders to identify apprenticeship opportunities that drive capability and future skills development
• Champion and influence a “Levy first” mindset across the organisation, ensuring we maximise levy utilisation
• Act as Virgin Atlantic’s subject matter expert on apprenticeships, staying ahead of changes in funding rules, legislation, and industry trends
• Lead internal campaigns to raise awareness of apprenticeship opportunities, working with leadership teams and SMEs
• Represent Virgin Atlantic externally, including the Department for Education (DfE), The Department for Transport (DfT), and the Aviation Industry Skills Board (AISB)
• Build strong relationships with training providers, ensuring high-quality learner experiences and compliance
• Lead and develop the Apprenticeship team, ensuring clarity, performance, and engagement

• Experienced in designing and delivering apprenticeship strategies, with up-to-date knowledge of the DfE framework, levy funding rules, and DfE compliance
• Confident influencing at all levels, with the ability to inspire and engage stakeholders in a skills-first vision
• Skilled in building relationships with both internal teams and external bodies
• Passionate about learning, talent development, and creating pathways for future careers
• A natural leader who thrives on delivering results through collaboration and innovation
• CIPD qualified (HR or Learning) or equivalent experience desirable

Our customers come from all walks of life and so do our colleagues. That’s why we’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer and actively encourage applications from all backgrounds. At Virgin Atlantic, we believe everyone can take on the world - no matter your age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disabilities, religion, or beliefs. We celebrate difference and everything that makes our colleagues unique by upholding an inclusive environment in which we can all thrive. So that everyone at Virgin Atlantic can be themselves and know they belong.

To make your journey with us accessible and individual to you, we encourage you to let us know if you’d like a little extra help with your application, or if you have any individual requirements at any stage along your recruitment journey. We are here to support you, so please reach out to our team, ([email protected]) feeling confident that we’ve got your individual considerations covered.

At Virgin Atlantic, our leaders empower teams to thrive through collaboration, innovation, and excellence. Explore our Leadership Recipe and discover the 20 core ingredients that define what it means to lead with us, driving our mission to be the most loved travel company and achieve sustainable profit. Want to learn more? Click here