Askham
Salary: £30,000£35,000 per annum, depending on experience Permanent | Full time | 40 hours per week Walesby Forest, Nottinghamshire A Head Chef role without the late nights If you love running a kitchen but could happily leave behind the late-night finishes that often come with hospitality, this could be the opportunity for you. Walesby Forest is looking for a hands-on Head Chef to take ownership of our kitchen, lead and develop our catering team and deliver great food across our varied, seasonal operation. Youll work 40 hours per week, with no late-night service and an anticipated latest finish of around 7.30pm. High-volume weekend working is limited, increasing during key school holiday and summer event periods. Youll be joining an established operation with menus, recipes, costings, ordering processes and food management systems already in place but with plenty of opportunity to take ownership and continue developing what we do. About the Role Our catering operation changes throughout the year. During term time, the focus is predominantly residential catering for school groups, providing breakfast, lunch and evening meals from established menus, across one or more sittings depending on occupancy. At other times, youll provide catering for apprentices, organised groups and occasional event crews and volunteers. During key school holiday periods, the operation changes again, with the kitchen delivering a cook-to-order bar food offer for our camping guests. These different service models dont ordinarily operate concurrently, allowing you to plan and lead the kitchen around the customers using the site. As Head Chef, youll take responsibility for: Leading food preparation, cooking and service and being hands-on in the kitchen. Planning production and staffing around bookings, customer numbers and service requirements. Recruiting, training, developing and leading the catering team. Building effective rotas and managing staffing within our defined catering labour model. Maintaining consistently high standards of food quality, kitchen cleanliness and organisation. Taking ownership of food safety, hygiene and allergen management, ensuring established systems are accurately and consistently followed. Managing ordering, stock, food costs, portion control and waste. Owning and developing our established menus, recipes and costings so they continue to meet customer, operational and commercial needs. Developing our public/bar food offer, keeping it fresh, appealing and relevant while ensuring food can be delivered quickly and consistently during busy holiday periods. Were not looking for someone to arrive and change everything. Were looking for someone who can take ownership of whats already working, maintain high standards and have the confidence and creativity to keep developing the offer over time. About You You might already be a Head Chef, or you could be an experienced Sous Chef ready to take ownership of your own kitchen. Either way, youll be a confident, capable chef who enjoys being hands-on and is equally comfortable leading people and planning ahead. Youll have experience working in a professional kitchen, leading or supervising a team and delivering food efficiently for groups or significant customer volumes. Youll have a strong understanding of food safety and allergen management and be comfortable with ordering, stock control, food costing and managing waste. Youll also need the organisational skills to look ahead at bookings and translate them into effective production plans and rotas. Most importantly, were looking for someone who takes pride in their kitchen someone who notices when something isnt right, takes responsibility for fixing it and wants their team, food and standards to continually improve. Why Walesby Walesby Forest is a 250-acre outdoor activity and residential centre in Nottinghamshire, operated as a charity with the aim of supporting the development of young people. The site welcomes a wide range of customers throughout the year, including weekday school residentials, organised youth and wider group stays, major events and public camping during key holiday periods. For our Head Chef, that means a varied role and a working pattern thats very different from traditional restaurant hospitality. What you can expect: £30,000£35,000 salary, depending on experience 40-hour working week No late-night service anticipated latest finish around 7.30pm Limited weekend working for much of the year A varied, seasonal catering operation Additional authorised hours during particularly busy periods managed through time off in lieu during quieter periods An established kitchen operation with genuine scope to develop the food offer If youre an experienced Head Chef looking for a different working environment and a better work-life balance or a strong Sous Chef ready to take the next step wed love to hear from you. TPBN1_UKCT