British Steel Apprenticeships 2027: More Than 40 Places in Scunthorpe, Teesside and Skinningrove

British Steel apprenticeships are open for 2027, with more than 40 apprentice and graduate places on offer across Scunthorpe, Teesside and Skinningrove, the company announced on 6 November 2026. The apprenticeship programme offers electrical and mechanical places at all three sites, while the graduate scheme covers manufacturing operations and engineering roles. Applications are open now, with graduate applications closing on 26 February 2027 and apprenticeship applications closing on 8 March 2027.

The announcement is good news for school leavers and recent graduates in Lincolnshire and the North East. British Steel took on 70 new apprentices in September 2026, and earlier in 2026 it relaunched its graduate recruitment programme, welcoming 16 new graduates in September, the first graduate intake since 2022. The 2027 intake builds on that return, with places spread across the company's main steelmaking sites rather than concentrated in one town.

At a glance	British Steel 2027 intake
Places on offer	More than 40 apprentices and graduates
Apprenticeships in Scunthorpe	12 electrical and 12 mechanical
Apprenticeships at Northern Mills	Eight electrical and eight mechanical across the Teesside and Skinningrove sites
Graduate roles	Manufacturing operations, mechanical and electrical engineering, materials engineering
Minimum requirement	Three GCSEs at grade 4/C or above, including maths, English and science
Graduate deadline	26 February 2027
Apprenticeship deadline	8 March 2027
Where to apply	britishsteel.co.uk/join-our-team/current-vacancies

What the British Steel apprenticeships offer

The apprenticeship programme offers 12 electrical and 12 mechanical positions in Scunthorpe, and eight of each at the Northern Mills sites in Teesside and Skinningrove. The announcement does not state whether the eight electrical and eight mechanical places at the Northern Mills sites are eight at each site or eight across the two sites combined, so applicants should check the details for the site they want on the company's careers page. Across the programme, apprentices receive hands-on training alongside nationally recognised qualifications, and the package includes 35 days of holiday, a company pension, a health cash plan and access to discounts at local businesses.

The graduate scheme covers manufacturing operations, mechanical and electrical engineering, and materials engineering, with further graduate opportunities in other business functions expected to be released in the coming weeks. Graduates join a company that has been rebuilding its early-careers pipeline: the 16 graduates who joined in September 2026 were the first graduate intake since 2022, and the 70 apprentices who joined the same month were the largest recent cohort. For applicants, that history matters, because it shows the company is hiring for the long term rather than filling a one-off gap. Graduates who do not see a role in their own function yet should keep checking the careers page, since the company has said more business-function roles are coming, and an early application for an advertised role is better than waiting for a perfect match that may arrive after the 26 February 2027 deadline.

For school leavers, the choice between the two apprentice disciplines is worth thinking through before applying. Electrical apprentices work on the power, control and instrumentation systems that keep a steelworks running, while mechanical apprentices work on the furnaces, rolling mills and heavy machinery. Both routes lead to nationally recognised qualifications, and both are offered at Scunthorpe and at the Northern Mills sites, so the decision is about the kind of work the applicant wants to do rather than the town. Applicants should have their GCSE certificates ready, since the three-GCSE minimum is checked, and should be prepared to explain why they want a career in steel, a question the company's own careers guidance raises for every applicant.

Who can apply for the 2027 intake

Apprenticeship applicants must have at least three GCSEs at grade 4/C or above, including maths, English and science. The company describes the roles as suited to ambitious people who want to learn, develop their skills and play a part in the future of British Steel. Nick Ashton, the company's HR director, said investing in future talent is essential to the long-term success of the business, and pointed out that many current colleagues began their careers through apprenticeship and graduate programmes before moving into key roles across the organisation.

The roles are based in the UK, at Scunthorpe in Lincolnshire and at Teesside and Skinningrove in the North East. The announcement does not state whether visa sponsorship is available, so applicants from outside the UK should check eligibility on the official careers page before applying. The apprenticeship and graduate pages list the requirements for each role, and applicants should read them carefully, since the academic requirements and the closing dates differ between the two schemes.

How to apply before the deadlines

Graduate applications close first, on 26 February 2027, and apprenticeship applications close on 8 March 2027. Both schemes are advertised on the British Steel careers page at britishsteel.co.uk/join-our-team/current-vacancies, and that page is the only channel the company has named. Applicants should apply through the official page only and never pay anyone to apply, since genuine employers do not charge a fee for a job application.

School leavers preparing an application should gather their GCSE results first, since the three-GCSE minimum is a firm requirement, and check which site and discipline fits them best: electrical or mechanical for apprentices, and manufacturing operations, mechanical and electrical engineering or materials engineering for graduates. Those weighing an apprenticeship against other options can compare it with other large apprentice intakes, such as the 281 apprentice posts at RITES listed on Growentix, while jobseekers watching the wider UK market should note that UK job adverts may soon have to show salary ranges, which would make comparing offers easier. The two deadlines fall in late February and early March 2027, so there is time to prepare a careful application, but the graduate deadline comes first and should not be left until the last week.

Sources: Yahoo News UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/british-steel-announces-apprentice-graduate-050000808.html on the places, deadlines, requirements and package, published 6 November 2026; British Steel careers page at https://britishsteel.co.uk/join-our-team/current-vacancies for applications.