Head Chef

Nellsar Ltd; Maidstone; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay

Bank Holiday uplift

Refer a Friend £1000

Enhanced DBS paid by the company

Induction programme

Funded qualifications via Apprenticesh

Leadership development

Employee support helpline

Uniforms

Job summary

Nellsar Ltd is seeking a Head Chef to lead the kitchen in Lukestone Care Home. You will create appealing, nutritious meals, plan menus with residents, and ensure high standards of service with attention to dietary needs.

You will manage a busy kitchen, lead a small team, work within budgets, and drive quality through regular audits and continuous improvement. Training and progression opportunities are available within the company.

Qualifications

• Experience leading a kitchen team in a care/home setting.
• Ability to plan menus with resident input and dietary needs.
• Experience managing budgets and stock in a high-volume kitchen.
• Familiarity with audits and action planning.

Responsibilities

• Lead kitchen operations to deliver high-quality meals for residents.
• Plan and agree menus with residents and the manager, considering dietary needs.
• Prepare and serve meals promptly with fresh produce.
• Manage budgets and stock; monitor waste and costs.
• Complete regular audits and implement corrective actions.

Skills

Leadership

Menu planning

Budgeting

Stock control

Audits

Staff training

Nutrition & dietary needs

Job description

As a Head Chef, you will enjoy being part of an exceptionally supportive team, welcoming you into providing outstanding physical, emotional, and social assistance to the people living at Lukestone Care Home. The perfect role for you Being a caring heart, with a passion for making people happy, you'll be responsible for providing high quality, attractive dishes for the people in our care with a range of special dietary and nutritional needs. Catering for large-scale clientele in healthcare requires a driven, enthusiastic, and understanding individual. Nellsar is committed to developing and training our staff to ensure high quality care is provided to our residents and the successful candidate will receive on-going training and development with opportunities for progression within the Company, including apprenticeships for new and existing staff. You will have the opportunity to excel whilst: The Head Chef/Cook responsibilities include but are not limited to the following:

• Ensuring that residents are at the heart of care delivery and their wishes and preferences are taken into consideration to enhance their wellbeing.
• Preparing menus and agreeing them with the residents and the manager, including any resident preferences, special diets and specific foods as needed.
• Preparing and serving all meals in a timely manner.
• Working with fresh produce to deliver high quality and wholesome dishes cooked at the highest quality and standards.
• Working within budgets and managing stock control.
• · Completing regular audits and associated action plans.

Are you passionate about food? Do you like to get creative with ingredients and whip up dishes that provide both joy and a healthy balance of nutrition to those you are serving? Do you have exceptional leadership skills and the ability to inspire those around you to achieve amazing results? If so, this could be the next step you've been looking for.

Nellsar has been a family-run Company since 1988 and we provide exceptional care for residents across our group of 13 Care Homes in Kent, Surrey, and Essex. We consistently strive to achieve the highest standards of professional and person-centred care, and we achieve this by promoting the wellbeing and development of our team members. Our values focus on the individual, creating an inclusive environment with both residents and our teams at the heart of what we do every day.

It's our mission at Nellsar to ensure that people live life to the full

We are passionate about making every day count and bringing colour and laughter to the people living in our home, their visitors and the team supporting them.

• Competitive pay and paid training hours
• Enhanced pay rate for Bank Holidays
• 'Refer a Friend' payments of up to £1000
• Enhanced DBS paid for by the company
• Comprehensive induction programme
• Access to funded qualifications via the apprenticeship programme
• The opportunity to help your team develop
• Free 24-hour access to confidential employee support helpline
• Nellsar work uniforms