Nursery Chef

Family First Nurseries; Wickford; Hybrid; GBP 23,000 - 28,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

24 days annual leave plus bank hols +

Birthday off

Employee wellbeing programme

Learning and development opportunities

Refer a Friend bonus

Supportive team environment

Opportunities to grow within Family

Job summary

Wickford London Road Nursery, part of the Family First Group, is seeking a reliable Nursery Chef to join our team. The role involves preparing nutritious meals for children in a safe, clean kitchen and delivering high standards of hygiene and food safety daily.

You will work Monday to Friday, 9am–5pm, 35 hours per week, with an annual salary of £25,480. We offer long leave, wellbeing support, learning opportunities, and a supportive team environment.

Qualifications

• Experience preparing meals in a domestic or commercial kitchen.
• Good understanding of food allergies and dietary requirements.
• Knowledge of COSHH regulations.
• Experience working within a catering budget.
• Fluent spoken and written English.
• Experience cooking for young children.
• A passion for providing healthy, nutritious meals that children enjoy.

Responsibilities

• Prepare and cook fresh meals daily while minimising food waste.
• Cater for all dietary requirements, allergies and cultural needs.
• Maintain a clean, safe and hygienic kitchen in line with food safety regulations.
• Follow Red, Amber and Green Plate procedures.
• Complete daily hygiene records and cleaning schedules.
• Manage stock and food orders within budget.
• Ensure all health, safety and food hygiene standards are consistently met.

Skills

Meal prep

Food allergies

COSHH regulations

Catering budget

English (spoken and written)

Cooking for children

Healthy meals for kids

Job description

Wickford, United Kingdom | Posted on 06/11/2026

• Location Just Imagine Day Nursery - Wickford London Road
• Date Opened 06/11/2026
• Work Experience 1-3 years
• Job Type Part time
• City Wickford
• Postal Code SS12 0AN
• Country United Kingdom

Job Description

Nursery Chef

Wickford London Road Nursery Permanent | 35 hours per week Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm Annual Salary: £25,480.00

75% Childcare Discount | Birthday Off | Employee Wellbeing Programme

Do you enjoy preparing fresh, nutritious meals and want to play an important role in children's wellbeing?

At Wickford London Road Nursery, we're looking for a reliable and enthusiastic Nursery Chefto join our friendly team. Your role will be central to ensuring our children enjoy healthy balanced meals in a safe and welcoming environment.

Working behind the scenes, you'll prepare and cook fresh, age-appropriate meals while maintaining the highest standards of food hygiene, safety and cleanliness. Your commitment to quality and care will support children's health, development and happiness every day.

What we offer:

• 24 days annual leave plus bank holidays and your birthday off
• Employee wellbeing andassistanceprogramme
• Tailored learning and development opportunities
• Refer a Friend bonus scheme
• Supportive and welcoming team environment
• Opportunities to grow within the Family First Group

The role:

As our Nursery Chef, you'll be responsible for delivering nutritious meals while maintaining an organised, safe and compliant kitchen. Your responsibilities will include:

• Preparing and cooking fresh meals each day while minimising food waste
• Catering for all dietary requirements, allergies and cultural needs
• Maintaining a clean, safe and hygienic kitchen in line with food safety regulations
• Following Red, Amber and Green Plate procedures
• Completing daily hygiene records and cleaning schedules
• Managing stock and food orders within budget
• Ensuring all health, safety and food hygiene standards are consistently met

Whatwe'relooking for:

• Experience preparing meals in a domestic or commercial kitchen
• Good understanding of food allergies and dietary requirements
• Knowledge of COSHH regulations
• Experience working within a catering budget
• Fluent spoken and written English
• Experience cooking for young children
• A passion for providing healthy, nutritious meals that children enjoy

Apply today!

If youare looking for a rewarding role where your work makes a genuine impact on children's health and wellbeing, we'd love to hear from you.

We are committed to safeguarding and protecting the welfare of children and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. A Disclosure and Barring Service Certificate will berequiredfor all posts. This post will be subject to enhanced checks as part of our Safeguarding Duty.

Wickford London Road Nursery is part of the Family First Group where we take great care to treat everyone as a person, with equal rights and responsibilities to any other individual, whether they are an adult or a child. We are committed to providing equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice for all children and families according to their individual needs. Discrimination on the grounds of gender, age, race, religion or belief, marriage or civil partnership, disability, sexual orientation, gender reassignment,pregnancyor maternity, ethnic or national origin, or political belief has no place within the Family First Group.