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Senior Leader Higher (Apprenticeship) PgDip

2026-27 (also available for 2024-25, 2025-26)

How to apply
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Start date

21 September 2026

17 May 2027

Duration

19 months part-time

About the course

Reasons to study

  1. Outstanding Quality - The University of Huddersfield is an Ofsted Outstanding provider, ensuring you’ll receive top-tier apprenticeship training.
  2. Practical Leadership Skills - Gain hands-on expertise in engaging with people through inclusive and responsible leadership, providing strategic direction and a clear sense of purpose to your organisation and leading on operational systems, processes and decision making, all whilst applying your learning directly at work.
  3. Recognised Qualification - Earn a Postgraduate Diploma in Management and Chartered Manager status by the CMI, boosting your career prospects.

Looking to lead with confidence and drive real change?

Our Level 7 Senior Leader Apprenticeship is designed for aspiring or newly appointed leaders who want to take a strategic view of their organisation, its processes, and their role within it.

The course explores how organisations interact with their environments, the impact of leadership styles, and the importance of engaging colleagues effectively. Leadership isn’t just about what you do - it’s about how you do it, with ethics, responsible leadership, communication, and sustainability woven throughout the course.

The course breaks down into three high-impact modules

  • Strategy and Innovation
  • Responsible Leadership and People Engagement
  • Operational Systems, Processes, and Decision Making

With a hands-on, training-in-practice approach, this apprenticeship doesn’t just teach theory; it’s all about applying what you learn directly in your workplace. Supported by your employer, you’ll see an immediate impact on your role and your organisation.

Spanning 19 months, this blended course combines engaging classroom sessions, interactive online learning, and real-world task completion. It all culminates in a live project crafted with your line manager, giving you the chance to showcase your skills in a way that matters.

Throughout, you’ll have the support of a dedicated course leader and industry-savvy subject experts, alongside a work-based learning coach who’ll help you bridge the gap between theory and practice. By the end, you’ll walk away with a portfolio of evidence proving your competencies - and the confidence to step up as a senior leader.

Our Level 7 Senior Leader Apprenticeship is accredited with Chartered Management Institute Level 7. At the end of the programme, you will also be awarded a Postgraduate Diploma in Management and granted chartered manager status by the CMI.

Course detail

Core modules:

Responsible Leadership and People Engagement

This module will support you to demonstrate knowledge, skills and behaviours associated with ethical and value-based leadership. You will learn how to develop effective stakeholder engagement and talent management strategies and you will learn how to build a high-performance, inclusive culture that gets the best from people, enables the delivery of results.

Strategy and Innovation

This module will support you to demonstrate knowledge, skills and behaviours associated with shaping organisational mission, values and strategic direction. It encompasses horizon scanning, responsible decision-making, influencing and negotiating and change leadership. By completing this module you will have the knowledge and ability to set direction, vision, governance and provide a clear sense of purpose for your area of responsibility. You will also be able to lead agile transformation by responding and managing change and crisis situations in a variety of environments such as an office, onsite or remotely.

Operational Systems, Processes and Decision Making

This module will help you demonstrate knowledge, skills and behaviours associated with effective operational management and decision making. The module covers financial governance and accountability, knowledge and data management, risk management and procurement. You will learn how to use data from internal intelligence sources and external influences in order to identify longer-term opportunities and risks.

End Point Assessment

After successfully completing the Gateway for the Level 7 Senior Leader Apprenticeship, you will enter the End Point Assessment period, when this module will be completed. The module entails the unaided completion of a strategic business proposal, which is a relevant and defined piece of work that has a real business benefit. In addition, you will prepare a presentation that, along with the strategic business proposal, appropriately covers the relevant Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours. On successful completion of this module, you will receive notification of the outcome from the End Point Assessment Organisation (EPAO), which confirms that you have completed all elements of the apprenticeship. This will be graded but is separate from the University award which is not graded. You will also receive your apprenticeship certificate directly from your EPAO.

Entry requirements

  • Learners must hold English and Mathematics at level 2 or equivalent or learners must agree to complete their English and Mathematics at level 2 during their on-programme learning – international equivalency will be confirmed through the UK ENIC system.
  • The employer must confirm that the learner is in an appropriate role, and working at a sufficient level, to enable them to develop and demonstrate the knowledge, skills and behaviours specified within the standard.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page.

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you'll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you'll soon discover that you're never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey. Find out more about all our support services.

Research excellence

Research plays an important role in informing all our teaching and learning activities. Through research our staff remain up to date with the latest developments in their field, which means they can help you to develop knowledge and skills that are current and highly relevant.

Find out more about our research staff and centres.

Important information

Apprenticeship Disclaimer

When you enrol as an apprentice learner of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by a framework of regulations, policies and procedures, which form the basis of your agreement with us. These include regulations regarding the assessment of your course, academic integrity, your conduct (including attendance) and our disciplinary procedure. It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to them when you join us as an apprentice. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan, where you will also find links to the full text of each of the regulations, policies and procedures referred to.

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons:

Changes to a course you have applied for but not yet started If we propose to make a major change to an apprenticeship course that you have applied for, then we will tell you and your employer as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment. Although we always try and run all the courses we offer, we may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or delay your course start date if we consider this reasonably necessary, for example if there are not enough applicants to ensure you have a good learning experience. Where this is the case we will notify you and your employer as soon as reasonably possible. In such instances, we will work with you and your employer to agree a deferred start date, or cancel your application and, if appropriate, provide information regarding other local apprenticeship providers.

Changes to your course after you enrol as an apprentice We will only make major changes to the core curriculum of a course or to our services if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change is a change that materially changes the services available to you, or the outcomes, or a significant part, of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days, classes, type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum. For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators; to meet the requirements of an updated version of the apprenticeship standard relevant to your course; to meet the latest requirements of a commissioning or accrediting body; to improve the quality of educational provision; in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback; and/or to reflect academic or professional changes within subject areas. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment. In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed and we will notify you and your employer as soon as possible about what your options are, which may include being provided with individual teaching to complete the award for which you were registered or claiming an interim award and exiting the University. If a major change affects your course, we will notify you and your employer as soon as possible and will carry out suitable consultation with affected apprentices. If you and your employer reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment we will work with both of you to try to find an appropriate solution. Where one cannot be found we will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring your remaining apprenticeship learning to another training provider if you and your employer wish to do so.

Termination of employment As your employer is funding your apprenticeship course, you must remain in relevant employment for the duration of the course until you have completed your end point assessment. Under the apprenticeship rules, if you are made redundant and you have completed 75% of the practical period or have less than 6 months left, then you may complete the course. Otherwise, unless you find alternative relevant employment within 12 weeks of the date you are made redundant, then you will be withdrawn from the course.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University. The ESFA is the principal regulator for your apprenticeship course.

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