Cook - Longlands Care Home

West Northamptonshire Council; Northampton; On-site; GBP 12,000 - 15,000; Part time

Job summary

West Northamptonshire Council is seeking a committed Cook/Chef to deliver nutritious meals for elderly residents in a Daventry care home. This role focuses on meal quality, safety, and resident wellbeing, with training and support provided.

The position is part-time (21 hours/week) with early starts around 8:00am and a two-week rota. You will work closely with the Senior Cook to create tasty meals that meet individual dietary needs.

Qualifications

• Experience of preparing and cooking meals in a care or residential setting.
• Ability to design meals meeting dietary, cultural and medical needs.
• Good understanding of food hygiene and health and safety practices.
• Basic Food Hygiene Certificate is required.

Responsibilities

• Cook daily meals for residents in a 24-hour care home.
• Plan menus considering diets, allergies and preferences.
• Ensure kitchen safety and hygiene and complete risk assessments.
• Support residents during mealtimes and assist staff.

Skills

Food hygiene knowledge

Meal preparation experience

Customer care

Care setting suitability

Education

Basic Food Hygiene Certificate

Job description

About the role

We are looking for a committed and enthusiastic Cook/Chef to deliver high-quality, nutritious meals for our elderly residents. This is a rewarding role where your skills will directly contribute to the wellbeing of those in your care.

Longlands Care home is situated in Daventry, we offer a happy and safe living environment in which our residents can enjoy an enhanced quality of life.

Our Team of friendly and committed staff provide the highest level of care and specialise in supporting people living with Dementia.

With our great accommodation and facilities and a programme of activities, our care home aims to provide a home from home atmosphere in which our residents can feel comfortable, content and very well cared for.

It is situated in Daventry, and it offers a wonderful living environment in which our residents can enjoy an enhanced quality of life.

We have teams of friendly and committed staff who provide the highest level of dementia care and residential care.

With our great accommodation and facilities and a programme of activities, our care home evokes a home from home atmosphere in which our residents can feel comfortable, content and very well cared for.

Our customers (Residents) are at the heart of what we do. You will receive continuous training, support assistance. Most of your team will have grown organically within WNC. A rare natural enjoyment for their role and the support they offer to our customers.

What will you be doing?

You're not just preparing meals - you're creating moments of comfort and joy for the people who live in our care home. A warm meal can brighten someone's whole day, and you'll be a big part of that. Working alongside our Senior Cook.

Cooking daily meals

Preparing and cooking breakfast, lunch and tea for residents in a 24-hour care home. Ensuring meals are tasty, nutritious and meet residents' needs.

Planning menus

Designing menus that take into account different diets, allergies, health conditions, textures, and personal preferences.

Ensuring safety and hygiene

Keeping the kitchen clean and compliant, following food hygiene rules, completing risk assessments, and reporting any faults or hazards.

Supporting residents

Creating a positive mealtime experience, supporting staff at mealtimes, and ensuring residents are kept safe around kitchen areas.

Working 21 hours per week, with shifts starting at 8am and finishing at 3.30pm.

The role operates on a two-week rota as follows:

Week 1: Monday, Tuesday, either Wednesday or Thursday

Week 2: Monday, Saturday and Sunday

Please note: The working pattern and days are fixed to meet the needs of the service and are not flexible.

About you

At West Northamptonshire Council, we want colleagues who THRIVE. In this role, you'll bring the skills, attitude, and values that help us deliver great care every day.

• A genuine commitment to preparing safe, nutritious meals that meet individual dietary, cultural, and medical needs.
• An understanding of equal opportunities and respect for people's behavioural, physical, social, and welfare.
• Experience of preparing and cooking meals, ideally in a care, day centre, or residential setting.
• A good understanding of food hygiene and health & safety practices, including a Basic Food Hygiene Certificate.

This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore subject to an enhanced DBS certificate. It is also a regulated activity and will be subject to a Children and Adults Barred List check. West Northamptonshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

This role does not meet the legal requirements for visa sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route. We cannot accept individuals on full-time sponsorship who are seeking this as a second job or as their main job, as care is no longer classified as a Skilled Worker occupation.

Our benefits

You can also see our full list of employee benefits on our careers site here: Why you should work for us | West Northamptonshire Council

About us

At West Northants Council, it's about our people. People who thrive with ambition, bubble with new ideas, demand better ways of working, caring about every detail, and who never shy away from a challenge. Our culture is a gateway for new experiences. A place to forge new opportunities. To empower you in your career and unite you with like-minded people.

Our vision is 'to make West Northants a great place to live, work, visit and thrive'. We truly stand by this and work hard every day to make this a reality. Our corporate values, THRIVE, stand for: Trust, High Performance, Respect, Innovate and Empower, they underpin everything we do and how we deliver services.

We are committed to ensuring diversity, equality, equity, and inclusion is woven into the fabric of WNC and everything we do, to enable all colleagues to develop and maximize their full potential. We are a disability confident employer, a member of the Armed Forces Covenant, and a Care Leaver Covenant partner

The following film was created by us to communicate our intentions - watch WNC colleagues explain what DEI means to us.

If you need additional support or reasonable adjustments during the application process, including needing the job description in another format or language, please email [e-mail] for support.

West Northants Council, where careers thrive.