Assistant Chef - Repton Senior

Package Description

Location:  Repton School

Responsible to:  Senior House Chef

Contract Type:  Permanent, term-time, with 288 hours outside of school term

Hours of work: Varied hours available during term time, and 288 enterprise hours outside of the school term

Salary: £14.00 per hour

Benefits: Employer Pension Scheme, free membership of Repton Sports Centre

Job Introduction

Repton School is seeking a reliable, conscientious and talented Chef to work within one of our boarding houses. You will be responsible for producing quality, healthy and appealing fayre for pupils within the House, with ages ranging from 13 to 18 years old.

If you are an experienced Chef looking for a new challenge in a prestigious environment and you possess the skill, knowledge and qualities required to flourish in this role we would encourage your application. 

Please note that applications will only be accepted on the School’s official application form. If you are having trouble accessing the online form please contact HR@Repton.org.uk for an offline version of the application form.

Main Responsibilities

Role Responsibilities

Assistant Chef

The role of Assistant Chef  is responsible to the Senior House Chef for the provision of a high quality, in house catering service. This is a hands on, proactive role that requires a passion for fresh, nutritious and seasonal cooking. The role will be demanding, but wide ranging and fulfilling for the successful candidate. It is likely that the Senior House Chef will have previous experience leading and working within a small team able to lead and drive change and establish a culture of continuous improvement. You will need to be an innovative chef, conscious of current trends in food and innovations and dietary requirements.

Managing Resources

• To work closely with the Senior House Chef to provide best value without comprising quality of catering, food service and hospitality
• Working closely with the Senior House Chef you will take the lead with menu compilation, recipes and be responsible for quality of food produced and the service.
• Ownership and management of kitchen and stores
• Budgetary control of all aspects of catering provisions relating to house
• To accurately complete weekly expenditure reports and submit all necessary paperwork on a punctual basis to the Head of Catering.
• To ensure authorised food stock levels are maintained with monthly closing stock valuations.
• To ensure delivery notes/invoices are checked against orders/delivered items, signed for as accurate and any discrepancies are communicated immediately to the supplier.

Service Provision and Delivery

• Work closely with the Senior House Chef to ensure effective delivery of service.
• Proactively respond to service issues or escalations. Promptly and resolve professionally.
• Proactively review the quantity and quality of all food & beverages offered within the boarding house across the School day.
• To provide additional hospitality in the form of School functions & House Suppers and Dinners.
• To constantly strive to improve what we do, incorporating new & innovative dishes.
• To understand modern cooking techniques, recipes & trends.
• To ensure that sufficient portions are prepared and available at the appropriate service times.
• To ensure that food is attractive and appealing to the end user of the catering provision.

Health and Safety/Compliance

• To ensure adherence to all procedures within the School’s Health & Safety manual.
• To ensure compliance with the agreed health and safety policy and the completion of daily due diligence diary, adhering to COSHH regulations regarding food, equipment, materials and general safety.
• To ensure that the safe and efficient functionality of all kitchen equipment and report any defects to the Senior House Chef.
• To ensure that all catering staff maintain a clean and hazard free kitchen and follow best practice on all aspects of food storage, preparation and service relating to customer health.
• To always ensure the security of catering areas, that storage areas are locked, and that the facility is secure out of hours.
• To ensure that all catering personnel maintain high standards of cleanliness, personal hygiene and appearance.
• To maintain level 3 food hygiene as a minimum, undertaking refresher training when required.

Other Responsibilities

• To operate within the ethos, culture, overall aims & policies of the School.
• Provision of induction training for new team members.
• To work flexibly and undertake when required other duties associated with supporting the needs of the school such as functions or Enterprise business as may reasonably be determined by the Head of Catering or Director of Facilities & Services.
• Any other duties as the School may reasonably request.

The Ideal Candidate

Relevant Prior Experience

• Experience in managing a busy & diverse kitchen. 
• Experience in the delivery of high-volume quality, nutritious and well-balanced food. 
• Experience in maintaining budgets as set out by management.
• Knowledge of relevant Food Hygiene & Health & Safety Regulations.

Candidate Profile

• High energy, resilient, can-do attitude, proactive and flexible approach
• Strong leadership and hands on management skills
• Keen to support staff and pupils, whilst working towards the school’s ethos & objectives
• Confident verbal communicator, able to communicate effectively with professionals, staff, pupils and contractors
• Well organised, used to working at pace.
• Care and attention, particularly for all aspects of food presentation & safety

About Repton School

Repton is the ancient capital of Mercia, and the School, founded in 1557 from a bequest from Sir John Port of Etwall, was established on the site of a 7th century Anglo-Saxon Benedictine abbey and latterly a 12th century Augustinian priory and the School today incorporates many of the original buildings from the estate.

The School has over one thousand pupils across the Prep and Senior School, making it large enough to achieve excellence in and out of the classroom, yet small enough for individuals to grow and succeed. Repton and Repton Prep have always enjoyed a very close relationship and in 2020, the schools became a through-school.

At Repton Senior, each pupil, whether day or boarding, is a member of a House. Academic standards are high and creative activities, including music, art, drama and design, flourish. The School has a national profile in sport, in particular in football, hockey, cricket and swimming. Our pupils thrive both in and out of the classroom and they develop the skills, qualities and values that will lead to a successful life. 

Repton was one of the first British schools to set up overseas schools with the establishment of Repton School Dubai in 2007, and the development of a community of international schools is key to Repton’s future vision. Currently, Repton has schools in Dubai (2), Abu Dhabi (2), China, and Egypt, with plans to open a further four more over the next few years. Repton also includes five schools in the UK (Repton, Repton Prep, St Wystan’s, Vinehall and Marlborough House) with the ambition to grow its UK family of schools.