Head Chef — Adventure Catering Leader (Family‑Friendly)

PGL Travel, Ltd.; Hindhead; On-site; GBP 31,530 - 38,537; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days annual leave

Birthday off

Volunteer days

Additional holiday option

Wellbeing support

Pension

Family discounts

Job summary

PGL Travel, Ltd. is seeking a Head Chef to lead a dedicated catering team at our centres. You will manage rotas, set objectives, and train staff while ensuring top-tier food hygiene and allergen management.

The role emphasizes safe, mass-produced menus and high-quality meals for guests. You will report to the Catering Manager, supervise Chefs and assistants, and oversee production planning, stock, and waste.

Qualifications

• Experience as a Sous Chef/Head Chef in mid-to-large scale dining.
• Understanding of food mass production.
• Leadership with strong organisational and decision-making skills.
• Excellent knowledge of food hygiene & handling complex dietary requirements including allergies and intolerances.

Responsibilities

• Report to Catering Manager and manage a team of Chefs & Catering Assistants.
• Organise rotas, set clear objectives and identify training needs.
• Ensure team follows procedures to maintain food hygiene levels.
• Confidently managing complex dietary requirements and dietary restrictions.

Skills

Leadership

Mass production

Food hygiene

Allergen handling

Menu planning

Education

City & Guilds 7061/2 (or equivalent) and Level 3+ Food Safety

Job description

• Earn £35,034 (liveoff rate) per annum (our pay system is benchmarked and fair)
  
• Full Time Permanent Contract
• Accommodation & meal packages available (optional) at a generous rate with zero charge for bills or utilities.

Made by adventure

PGL isshaping the next generation through extraordinary residential adventures. Our award-winning programmes help children discover the fun of being outdoors, promote wellbeing, develop character, and build real-world skills for life.Will you join the adventure?

We’repart of something bigger

We’reproud to be part ofPGL Beyond, a network of educational travel brands which empowers young people to explore, grow and thrive – through exceptional experiences that go beyond the classroom. Together,we’remaking a difference.

A Head Chef position like no other…

What could be more important than fuelling the next generation for adventure? Our catering team are proud to serve tasty & nutritious meals, combining reassuring favourites and new cuisines to keep the adventure going. Our centralised team provides all the recipes, enabling you and your team to focus on executing our proven menus; delivering delicious as well as safe food by ensuring all health and safety, allergen safety & food safety standards are followed.

You will work limited late finishes, with a Friday or Saturday evening off most weeks (especially outside of our peak season) and no working over Christmas - this could be the perfect role to progress your career in catering without sacrificing that all important social and family time!

As Head Chef, you’ll be reporting to the Catering Manager, and responsible for managing a team of Chefs & Catering Assistants; organising rotas, setting clear objectives and identifying any training needs. You will also ensure your team is following procedures to maintain exemplary levels of food hygiene, and confidently managing complex dietary requirements. Alongside managing financial aspects of the catering operation, production planning, waste and stock management.

Is this you?

• Experience as a Sous Chef/Head Chef in a mid-to-large scale dining environment
  
• Has experience and understanding of food mass production
  
• A confident leader of people with strong organisational and decision-making skills
  
• Excellent knowledge of food hygiene & handling complex dietary requirements including allergies and intolerances
  
• You will hold your City & Guilds 7061/2 (or equivalent) and Level 3 or above in Food Safety and Allergen Management
  

Above all, it’s our core values of FUN, SAFETY, QUALITY, INCLUSIVITY, TEAMWORK and RESPECT that unite us.

A place to thrive

No matter your background, ethnicity, age, neurodivergence or anything else … PGL is a place to be yourself, have fun, use your valuable skills for good and celebrate what makes you brilliantly unique.

Fair pay and benefits for all

• On top of your 25 days annual leave (+ 8 bank holidays), you’ll also enjoy your birthday off, have paid volunteering days to help worthwhile causes and the option to purchase additional holiday.
  
• A career with ongoing growth, aided development, mentoring, multiple pathways and opportunities to work across different UK or French locations.
  
• 24/7 access to our Wellbeing Hub alongside our Employee Assistance Program
  
• Sector leading family friendly policies and a contributory pension
  
• Access to our financial wellbeing platform where you can borrow or save directly from your salary.
  
• Free/discounted PGL breaks for your family & discounts at 800+ retailers.

For a full Job Description and Personal Specificationplease click here

For any enquiries specific to this role please email [e-mail]

We hire the best talent and value a diverse, inclusive team; so, we are dedicated to ensuring our application process is accessible to everyone and are happy to provide helpful adjustments to make it easier to complete. Simply email or call us with detail around the adjustments you need.However, our top priority is the safety of the guests on our centres. Therefore, all centre based employees and some specific Head Office employees must undergo an Enhanced criminal record check (known as DBS or PVG), which we pay for. You will need to provide a 5-year address history and ID (such as passport/birth certificate). Convictions related to violence, drugs, or safeguarding may affect your application. Not all convictions will disqualify you, as we assess each case individually.