Administrator - Catering

West Sussex County Council; Chichester; Hybrid; GBP 25,000 - 26,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in Chichester is seeking a motivated administrator to support their Catering Service. This role involves delivering a customer-focused administrative service, maintaining effective communication, and managing multiple tasks efficiently. The position requires strong IT skills, 4 GCSEs including Maths and English, and a collaborative spirit. Flexible working arrangements are offered.

Benefits

25 days annual leave, increasing to 28 after 5 years

Local government pension scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Work-life balance initiatives

Qualifications

• Have excellent communication skills and a positive attitude.
• Proven experience in an office environment.
• Ability to handle confidential information with care.

Responsibilities

• Deliver customer-focused administrative service prioritizing tasks.
• Maintain professional relationships with colleagues and the public.
• Handle telephone, email and written queries independently.

Skills

Organisational skills

Communication skills

IT and word processing skills

Numeracy skills

Time management

Education

4 GCSEs with grades A-C, including Maths and English

Tools

Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)

Job description

Overview

Are you an exceptional team player, someone who can build and nurture meaningful working relationships?

Do you have a strong emphasis on accuracy and attention to detail?

If so, we would love to hear from you.

We are looking for an organised and motivated administrator to support our Catering Service.

The Catering team deliver catering services throughout West Sussex as part of the Communities Directorate. We manage large scale contracted services of statutory primary school meals and Meals on Wheels (MOW) that combined deliver around 30,000+ meals a day.

Position details

Salary: £25,583 to £25,989 per annum

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full-time (37 hours per week) Monday to Friday

Location: Based in County Hall, West Street, Chichester, PO19 1RQ. Hybrid working available, 2 days expected in the office with flexibility to cover leave when required.

Interview Date: Monday 13 October 2025

About the Job

We are currently seeking to appoint a motivated and organised individual. The ideal candidate will have excellent communication skills, maintain a friendly and positive attitude, demonstrate resilience and tenacity, and enjoy working as part of a team.

Reporting to a Team Leader, you will deliver a customer-focused and efficient administrative service, prioritising your daily tasks in line with team needs and service goals.

The role requires strong written and verbal communication, excellent IT and word processing skills and data entry with the ability to manage multiple tasks at once. Good organisation and time management skills are essential, along with the ability to work well under pressure and to deadlines.

Additional duties may include, but are not limited to:

• Establishing and maintaining professional working relationships with the public and colleagues.
• Use word processing and office software packages such as Microsoft 365 (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe and Outlook).
• Providing timely and efficient administrative support.
• Updating and maintaining relevant records accurately and appropriately.
• Responsibility for processing and/or creating Purchase Orders and invoices, as well as handling other relevant financial administrative tasks.
• Following established procedures to respond to queries independently to day-to-day telephone, email and written queries.
• Handling confidential and sensitive information with care.

Required Qualifications and Skills

• 4 GCSEs with grades A-C / 4-9 passes, including Maths and English, or an equivalent qualification or experience demonstrating comparable numeracy and literacy skills.
• Relevant technical knowledge of procedures and practices essential to delivering a dedicated and efficient administrative service.
• Proven experience working in an office environment.
• Sound and accurate overall IT knowledge and experience in using Microsoft Office including Word, Excel and Teams.
• Strong verbal communication skills for effectively handling telephone inquiries and engaging with colleagues and customers in person and through virtual channels.
• Clear and professional written communication skills to accurately process information, compose non-standard correspondence under guidance, and respond appropriately to emails.
• Proficient numeracy skills to work with figures and data, ensuring accurate financial calculations and systematic data collection.

If you have excellent organisational skills, effective communication abilities and can deliver quality customer service - we want to hear from you!

Rewards and Benefits

From flexible working (where possible) to access to our Employee Assistance Programme, we aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.

A laptop and mobile will be supplied if applicable to your role. You will benefit from 25 days annual leave, rising to 28 days after 5 years' service (pro rata for part time) plus the opportunity to buy additional leave, an excellent local government pension scheme as well as a range of discounts giving our staff access to hundreds of offers.

For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is CPP01206.

Does this sound like the opportunity for you? Click apply below, upload your CV, and complete the application form, explaining how you meet the key skills in the attached job description. Please ensure all gaps in employment are covered in your CV.

Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

Safeguarding

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to 3 years referencing and a health check.

Equity and Inclusion

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.

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