Area Support Manager

Impact Food Group; Chesterton; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Car allowance

Bonus potential up to 10%

Free meals on shift

Pension

Staff discount

Uniform

Job summary

Impact Food Group is seeking an experienced Business Support Manager to oversee a portfolio of school catering sites in Oxford & Surrounding Area. The role is Mon-Fri, 45 hours per week, with a car allowance and clear opportunities to lead service excellence across multiple sites.

You’ll manage Chef Managers, drive profitability while ensuring quality meals, and maintain close relationships with clients. A hands-on chef background and strong communication are essential for success.

Qualifications

• Managing at least four sites with Chef Managers and strong client relationships.
• Hands-on cooking approach and willingness to step into kitchen as needed.
• Strong communication from kitchen to boardroom.
• Self-motivated, resilient, highly organized with good prioritisation.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office and creating clear, professional reports.

Responsibilities

• Manage, inspire, and engage multi-site teams.
• Track and improve restaurant profit contribution while maintaining quality.
• Build trusted relationships with clients and stakeholders.

Skills

Multi-site management

Chef by trade

Client relationship management

MS Office skills

Kitchen support

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

About the Role

Welcome to Impact Food Group (IFG). We are one of England's fastest-growing school food providers, serving around one million students every day across more than 1,500 schools. We are dedicated to delivering high-quality, nutritious meals that support student wellbeing and enjoyment.

Our brands include Innovate, Cucina, Chapter One (Independent Schools), Hutchison, and Dolce, reflecting our breadth of experience and reach across the school catering sector.

Are you an experienced Contract Catering Operations Support Manager who still likes to be involved with food?

Looking to make a real difference? Be part of a growing business with a powerful social impact mission.

We’re not going to bore you with a long list of empty adjectives, we want one simple thing: awesome people to help us feed more children better food.

Job Title

Business Support Manager (BSM)

Area Covering

Oxford & Surrounding Area

Working Days

Monday to Friday

Shifts & Working hours

45 hours per week

Working Weeks

52 weeks per year (25 days paid annual leave plus bank holidays)

Pay Details

£38-40k per year plus car allowance of £3,840 per year (paid monthly)

Benefits

Bonus potential of up to 10% ( Discretionary ) of salary based on performance, free meals on shift, uniform, pension and other great company benefits

Join Our Team

Due to continued business growth, an exciting opportunity has arisen for experienced Operations Support Managers to join our team. In this role, you will work closely with the Operations Manager, supporting a portfolio of sites within your region.

You’ll bring multi-site management experience, a genuine passion for food and service, and strong craft skills, with the confidence to step into the kitchen and support when needed.

You will

• Manage, inspire, and engage teams
• Understand, track, and drive the schools’ restaurant profit contribution, balancing commercial performance with quality and service
• Build trusted relationships with clients and stakeholders to help deliver our shared goal of feeding more students, better food

What You’ll Bring

• Experience managing at least four sites, supporting and guiding Chef Managers in the smooth day-to-day running of each location, while also building and maintaining strong client relationships.
• A chef by trade, with a hands‑on approach and a willingness to step into the kitchen whenever needed.
• Confident communicating at all levels, from the kitchen through to the boardroom.
• Self‑motivated, resilient, and highly organised, with a strong ability to prioritise effectively.
• You’ll be confident using the Microsoft Office suite, with strong skills in creating clear, professional spreadsheets and presentations that effectively showcase performance and results.

What’s in it for you

We’ll give you the opportunity to grow and build a career you can be proud of.

You’ll have access to a wide range of free qualifications and ongoing development opportunities, as well as a staff discount scheme across over 850 retailers.

We also run monthly incentives, giving our top-performing teams the chance to win shopping vouchers and other rewards.

This role will require both an interview and a kitchen visit as part of the selection process.

IFG are committed to the safeguarding of children and our employees share this commitment. Successful candidates are required to undergo an enhanced DBS check, which IFG will pay for.

We are a committed equal opportunities employer - if you require any assistance for the interview process, please detail within your application. All information is kept confidential and in compliance with GDPR requirements.