Procurement and supply apprenticeships
Why CIPS?
If you have an employee at the beginning of their career or are looking to upskill your experienced workers, an apprenticeship is a great choice for both apprentice and employer.
Grow talent and develop a motivated, skilled and qualified workforce that will deliver direct, positive results into your organisation.
- Dedicated support from a Learning & Development coach to support your apprentices throughout
- All training and one-to-ones will take place at a convenient location or virtually
- All costs fully covered by the apprenticeship levy/government funding
- Books and eLearning to accompany each module
- Complete package includes workshops, revision sessions, exam fees, tutor one-to-ones and EPA mentoring
We’ll run programmes for up to 16 apprentices at a time, either from a single organisation or from more than one. If the whole group is from a single organisation, training and one to-ones will take place on site, otherwise it will be arranged in consultation with the various parties. Apprentices must be aged over 18, have GCSEs in Maths and English at grades A to C, or 4 to 9 in English and Maths, and not have studied procurement at Level 4 before.
- You can get help from the government to pay for apprenticeship training
- The amount you get depends on whether you pay the apprenticeship levy or not
- You pay the levy if you’re an employer with a pay bill over £3 million each year
- If you do not pay the levy, you will pay just 5% of the total cost, the government will contribute 95%
Choose your level
All levels are suitable for all organisations, sectors and industries.
Ideal for individuals completely new to procurement or those that have limited procurement knowledge, and/or responsibilities for low-risk procurement activities.
- Part 1: CIPS Level 3 Advanced Certificate in Procurement and Supply Operations
- L3M1 Procurement and Supply Environments
- L3M2 Ethical Procurement and Supply
- L3M3 Contract Administration
- L3M4 Team Dynamics and Change
- L3M5 Socially Responsible Procurement
- Part 2: Questioning Interview supported by Portfolio of Evidence
- Part 3: Work Based Project (3,000 words), followed by presentation, question and answers
- Total duration: 19 months
Ideal for individuals with limited commercial/procurement experience or people who are completely new to their role and possibly operating at a more senior level.
- Part 1: CIPS Level 4 Diploma in Procurement and Supply x 7 units
- L4M1 Scope and Influence of Procurement and Supply
- L4M2 Defining Business Need
- L4M3 Commercial Contracting
- L4M4 Ethical and Responsible Sourcing
- L4M5 Commercial Negotiation
- L4M6 Supply Relationships
- L4M7 Whole Life Asset Management
- Part 2: Presentation and questioning interview
- Part 3: Professional discussion underpinned by a portfolio of evidence
- Part 4: L4M8 Exam - Procurement and Supply in Practice
- Total duration: 22 months
Ideal for individuals that will interact with the senior leadership team, influencing and applying best practice in procurement and delivering strategic procurement plans in line with business goals and objectives. Senior procurement and supply chain professionals are likely to engage with a range of internal and external stakeholders on behalf of their organisations at both strategic and tactical levels.
- Part 1: CIPS Level 6 Professional Diploma in Procurement and Supply x 6 units
- L6M1 Strategic Ethical Leadership
- L6M2 Global Commercial Strategy
- L6M3 Global Strategic Supply Chain Management
- L6M5 Strategic Programme Leadership
- L6M7 Commercial Data Management
- L6M8 Innovation in Procurement and Supply
- Part 2: Presentation and questioning interview
- Part 3: Professional discussion underpinned by a portfolio of evidence
- Part 4: L6M4 (case study) Exam - Future Strategic Challenges for the Profession
- Total duration: 24 months
Hear from some of our apprentices
"The skills I have gained through my apprenticeship have already helped me gain a promotion to Assistant Procurement Manager."
Rachel Collier, Assistant Procurement Manager
"My apprenticeship has given me exposure to different industries and ways of working which I can carry over and adapt into my own role to bring innovation to the department."
Dilraj Singh Bharj, Apprentice Assistant Buyer
"I have been given the chance to build an extensive procurement skillset and knowledge base by completing my apprenticeship, which will in turn put me in an advantageous position when applying for future roles."
Ruby Burns, Procurement Apprentice
"CIPS being the globally recognised standard for Procurement means that all of the skills that I pick up are applicable to different types of industries across the world."
Dilraj Singh Bharj, Apprentice Assistant Buyer
We asked employers why they employed apprentices

86% of employers said apprenticeships helped them develop skills relevant to their organisation.

78% of employers said apprenticeships helped them improve productivity.

74% of employers said apprenticeships helped them improve the quality of their product or service.
Programmes
All programmes have four intakes per calendar year. The deadlines are the same each year, as follows:
- August (enrolment deadline – 31st May)
- November (enrolment deadline – 31st August)
- February (enrolment deadline – 30th November)
- April (enrolment deadline – 31st January)
Further information
For advice on how to recruit apprentices and set their pay and working hours vist the www.gov.uk website.
Interested?
If you're interested in learning more about how we can help enhance your teams' capability to deliver strategic and sustainable value throughout your whole organisation, simply follow the link below and fill out a few details. We'll then be in touch to let you know how CIPS can help your team.