Employment Tax Assistant Review
at PKF Smith Cooper
Higher Level Apprenticeship
Tax
Derby
Review Submitted: April 2025
Overall Rating
4 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
3/5
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Overview of Role
4/5
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Skills Development
4/5
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Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
3/5
I am a tax assistant so I help with first drafts of advice to clients, calculations, or team internal processes for various projects. It involves a lot of communication with clients (mainly via Outlook) and internal communication with the team in person or Teams.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
3/5
I have enjoyed the variety of the work, and not just limited to client facing work. Working in a smaller team gives you the exposure to a lot of different projects, and offers numerous learning opportunities.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
I have been able to improve my digital skills immensely. Particularly in terms of Office 365 since I had limited experience previously. This has helped with increasing efficiency and quality of work.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
3/5
Initially, the on-the-job training could have been more structured to help me with understanding the tax technical aspect of the job, as I struggled in this area for a while. Recent training has been much better. The ATT/CTA courses have been very useful in this aspect.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
4/5
All the team members I have had have been very supportive. I have always felt that I can approach them with any query, and they have always been happy to help. I have also had support from colleagues in other teams.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
The tutors encourage you email them if you have any queries. You can also access forums or student services as required.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
ATT was useful in helping to develop foundational tax technical knowledge which are relevant to my area of tax. I had no background in tax so it was all new to me. The tutors did a great job of explaining the different concepts. With CTA, I have been able to gain more in depth knowledge of my specific area of tax, which has really helped me a lot with various projects and internal queries from other teams.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
5/5
We have quarterly socials, departmental team away days, and annual events. There are various committees to join. We also get sent networking events on a regular basis.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend PKF Smith Cooper to a friend?
Yes
Why?
It is a great place to work. Everyone takes pride in their work and genuinely enjoy what they do. And from a personal perspective, I have gotten to meet great people and I have made good friends.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to PKF Smith Cooper?
Just to do your research on the company to see if you are the right fit or if it is the place for you.
