Chef

National Trust; Uckfield; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Substantial pension up to 10%

Free entry to National Trust places

Rental deposit loan

Season ticket loan

EV car lease scheme

Perks at work discounts

Holiday allowance up to 32 days

Flexible working

Employee assistance programme

Free parking

Job summary

National Trust in the UK is seeking a Chef to join our food and beverage team at Sheffield Park, Uckfield. You will prepare fresh, seasonal dishes in a busy kitchen, serving visitors with pride and care.

Joining a supportive, dynamic team, you’ll follow National Trust Cookbook standards, learn allergens and food safety, and have opportunities for professional development in a welcoming environment.

Qualifications

• Experienced as a professional chef or cook, with a passion for food and a friendly and positive attitude.
• Confident about following recipes and batch-cooking, and willing to learn.
• Aware of health and safety compliance.
• Happy working within a team, and good at communicating with people.

Responsibilities

• Kitchen focus: prepare delicious food from scratch using fresh, seasonal ingredients, served to visitors.
• Supportive team environment: show empathy and assist teammates as needed.
• Maintain high standards of food hygiene and COSHH procedures to minimise risks.
• Induction, allergens and food safety training, with opportunities for further development.

Skills

Professional chef

Batch-cooking

Health & safety

Team communication

Job description

Summary

Are you looking to step up your career in food and beverage? The National Trust is renowned for its food and hospitality. We run 185 cafes, tea-rooms, and restaurants all over England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and we're looking for a Chef to join us.

Because we are in a rural area, please think about how you'd be able to get here for work, before applying for the job.

Benefits

We want to help you look after the things that matter to you, such as saving for your future, getting a discount on your weekly shop, or encouraging you to find a work-life balance. Please read our package, below, to see what benefits we offer you.

Hours

37.5 hours a week (including weekends, bank holidays and school holidays), no evenings.

Salary

£27,704.00 per annum

Duration

Full time/Permanent

Interview date

Friday 23rd October

Potential start date

Beginning/middle of November

What It's Like To Work Here

To find out more about what it’s like to work in a food and beverage team for the National Trust, click here to watch our video.

Working at Sheffield Park is a rewarding and dynamic experience, especially as part of a fun, vibrant team. Set within one of the National Trust's most beautiful gardens, every day brings something different, whether you're creating delicious seasonal dishes, developing new menu ideas, or helping visitors make the most of their day out.

Food & Beverage plays an important role at Sheffield Park. We have the privilege of welcoming visitors and helping create memorable experiences through great food and hospitality. Just as importantly, every purchase helps generate income that supports the National Trust's work caring for Sheffield Park, so it can be enjoyed by everyone, for ever.

The atmosphere is warm and welcoming, with a shared passion for quality food, sustainability and excellent visitor experiences. Team spirit is at the heart of what we do, with colleagues supporting one another, sharing ideas and bringing creativity to seasonal menus and special events. There's a genuine camaraderie that makes even the busiest days enjoyable.

More than just a job, it's an opportunity to be part of a community that values nature, heritage and great hospitality, while helping visitors create lasting memories in a truly special place.

What You'll Be Doing

Your main focus is the kitchen, a busy and creative hub. You’ll be working within the framework of our 'National Trust Cookbook' to prepare delicious food from scratch using fresh, seasonal ingredients. Your food will be served directly to visitors.

You’ll help to build a great place to work, which includes showing empathy and giving support to team members when needed. The aim is to foster a positive spirit where everyone is focussed on giving the best possible service to visitors.

By maintaining high standards of food hygiene and COSHH procedures, you’ll minimise risks to visitors, staff and contractors.

We’ll give you an induction that fits the job, and training in allergens and food safety, plus any mentoring needed to help you in your role. You can sign up for further professional training and development if you wish.

You can view the full role profile for this role in the document attached. You don't need to have all of the knowledge, skills and experience listed in the role profile; this is just to provide a full picture of what’s possible in this role

Who We're Looking For

We'd love to hear from you if you're:

• Experienced as a professional chef or cook, with a passion for food and a friendly and positive attitude.


• Confident about following recipes and batch-cooking, and willing to learn.


• Aware of health and safety compliance.


• Happy working within a team, and good at communicating with people.

The package

The National Trust has the motto 'For everyone, for ever' at its heart. We're working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It's important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we're for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary


• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)


• Rental deposit loan scheme


• Season ticket loan


• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)


• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts


• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.


• Flexible working whenever possible


• Employee assistance programme


• Free parking at most Trust places

Click here to find out more about the benefits we offer to support you.

National Trust place

Sheffield Park, Sheffield Park, Uckfield, TN22 3QX

Documents

Chef - B.pdf

Requirements

Compliance.Eligibility to Work in the UK

Closing Date

18th October 2026

Equal Opportunities Statement

The National Trust celebrates diversity and is committed to creating a fair and equal society, free from discrimination. You can read more about our commitment to inclusion and diversity here.

Safeguarding Statement

The National Trust is committed to a safe recruitment processes to help the organisation attract and appoint the right staff/volunteer for the role and responsibilities as set out in the vacancy advert. We will not accept applicants who are not suitable to work with children, young people or adults at risk. If you have any questions around your suitability for this vacancy, please contact the people service centre.