Business Rates Trainee Surveyor (Graduate)

If you’re looking to join an organisation that will give you the right opportunities and experience to develop your career, join Tilney Smith and Williamson

Tilney Smith & Williamson is the UK’s leading integrated wealth management and professional services group, looking after the financial affairs of individuals, families, and businesses for more than a century. We offer a wide range of end-to-end services to meet client needs throughout their life, and at every stage of their business lifecycle.

This trainee scheme is a structured RICS Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) training programme combining practical experience with technical studies, as well as providing numerous opportunities to increase your skill set with internal courses ranging from personal impact and negotiation skills to time management and delivering presentations.

What will you be doing?

Our business rates tax team provides valuation and advisory services to a wide range of companies, from large multinational groups to owner-managed businesses on their business rates tax liabilities.

Our business rates tax advice is designed to ensure that client’s business rates tax liabilities are kept to a minimum and that they meet required compliance obligations set by the Valuation Office Agency.

In this role you will utilise and apply a number of rental valuation methods including comparable, contractors, depreciated replacement cost and receipts and expenditure valuation techniques. You will undertake a number of on-site inspections and measured surveys for clients in addition to application of valuation techniques to assess liabilities to utilise in negotiations as required with the Valuation Office Agency (VOA).

On this APC structured programme you will be enrolled on the RICS Commercial Real Estate APC pathway. Working closely with our senior business rates tax professionals, you’ll feel yourself improving day by day as they teach you the intricacies of business rates valuation which  

We believe that hands-on experience is key to creating well-rounded MRICS Chartered Surveyor this means you'll be doing real work from the start.

As our Trainee your responsibilities will include:

• Understand leases via review and return of necessary information to the Valuation Office Agency.
• Understanding and applying rental valuation principles to support Check, Challenge and Appeal on 2017 and 2023 Revaluations
• Assisting with direct negotiations on value or a point of law with the Valuation Office Agency
• Utilising key software packages to produce liability reports and budgetary business rates advice
• Gathering comparable evidence and review of relevant case law to aide negotiations and inform client advice
• Supporting more qualified staff on more complex client situations
• Acquiring and building relationships with your own clients
• Delivering first class client service and work effectively as part of a team

To be successful in this role, you should meet the following requirements:

• Committed and motivated to studying towards the RICS structured Assessment of Professional Competence 24 month training programme (Achieving MRICS status in October 2024)
• Must have or be enrolled on an undergraduate or post-graduate course with RICS accredited status and in line to achieve at least a 2:2 honours degree or a minimum ‘pass’ level in a Masters conversion course
• 112 UCAS points (or equivalent) in your top three A-levels (excluding General Studies)
• GCSE English Language and Maths (or equivalent) at a minimum of grade 5

What training and development will you receive?

During your 24 month training contract you will study towards the MRICS Assessment of Professional Competence qualification. This training programme will be in line with the Commercial Real Estate APC pathway as specified in the RICS Requirements and Competencies Guide August 2018.

In addition, you will receive on the job training and support, in order for you to develop commercial real estate experience. Over the APC training period, you can expect to learn the basic rental valuation principles in line with the Local Taxation/ Assessment competency. You will also meet the requirements of all Mandatory Competencies in addition to the Core Competencies of level 3 inspection and level 2 valuation and measurement through you’re training. Optional competencies in addition to local taxation (Level 3) will be supported either through cross department assistance or an external secondment.

Trainees are also encouraged to support managers with the on-going running of the client account for several core clients, thus enabling them to develop a greater understanding of their clients’ businesses and to develop core client management skills from an early stage in their career.