Ward Host

Serco; Southampton; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 55,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension up to 6%

25 days annual leave + bank holidays

Employee Assistance Programme

Job summary

Serco is hiring Ward Hosts at University Hospital Southampton. You will join the Ward Patient Catering team to provide high-quality hospitality service, taking orders and delivering meals and drinks to patients across shifts.

The role involves working in a fast-paced hospital environment, with emphasis on hygiene, safety, and patient care. The pay rate is £12.92 per hour, with various shift patterns and a supportive team culture.

Qualifications

• A good level of numeracy and literacy skills.
• Ideally, experience in a food service or catering environment.
• Understand the importance of hygiene and safety and awareness of special diets.
• Strong customer service skills are essential in this role.
• Positive communication to brighten a patient’s day.
• Physically demanding role requiring long periods of standing.

Responsibilities

• Take orders and deliver meals and drinks to patients.
• Meals are ordered via an electronic ordering system and prepared by hospital kitchens.
• Deliver meals to wards in a timely and courteous manner.

Skills

Numeracy

Literacy

Customer service

Communication

Food hygiene

Catering experience

Physically fit

Job description

Monday To Friday PM

3x 1330-2000 = 30h per week

University Hospital Southampton, SO16 6YD

Monday To Friday PM

• 3x 1330-2000 = 30h per week
• 6x 1430-1900 = 20h per week
• 2x 1500-1900 = 17.5h per week
• 2x 1500-1830 = 15h per week

Pay rate £12.92 per hour

Here at Serco, we are looking for Ward Hosts to join our team at University Hospital Southampton. Our Ward Hosts work as part of the Ward Patient Catering team, ensuring high quality hospitality service is provided.

Main Accountabilities

You will be responsible for taking orders and delivering a meal and drinks service, providing excellent customer service and care to patients. Meals are ordered using an electronic ordering system, and then prepared by the hospital kitchens and sent down to each ward to be delivered by the team.

What You'll Need To Do The Role

• A good level of numeracy and literacy skills, including readind and writing.
• Ideally, you will have worked within a food service environment or catering industry and you must understand the importance of hygiene and safety and special diet awareness.
• Strong customer service skills are a key part to this role, not only will you be serving food and beverages to the patients, but you will be interacting with them on a day to day basis.
• Positive communication can make a patient’s day that little bit brighter, so we need passionate and enthusiastic ward hosts on our team!
• This is a physically demanding role and the post holder will be expected to stand for long periods of time with manual handling involved.

Why Serco

• Meaningful and vital work: Working within soft services at Serco means that you’ll play a critical role in ensuring that patients continue to receive the care they need 24/7.
• A world of opportunity: It takes a diverse team to support a hospital and we’re big on internal progression. So whether you specialise your skills, progress into team management or move into operations, you’ll find all the opportunity you need to evolve your career.
• Great people: Hospitals are busy places and your role will see you interact with NHS staff, patients, and of course your supportive team. You will be part of the hospital.

What We Offer

• Up to 6% contributory pension scheme
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• A range of benefits to support the health and wellbeing of you and your family such as Employee Assistance Programme, Thrive App, Simply Health Plans, Annual Leave Purchase Scheme and more
• Access to a huge range of discounts and exclusive deals such as Merlin Attractions, Mobile Phone discounts, Cinema discounts, Leisure and Hospitality discounts
• A fantastic culture and supportive team where you’ll get the chance to make a positive difference in a company passionate about diversity and inclusion
• Company discounts which include cinema, merlin entertainment and online shopping and discounts on mobile phone plans and leisure centre memberships.
• Interesting and enjoyable work
• Committed to professional and personal development with a wide range of training and coaching opportunities to expand your capabilities

A Little Bit About Us

At Serco, everyone plays a vital part in delivering essential public services that make a real difference. As a global team of 50,000 people across Defence, Transport, Justice, Immigration, Healthcare, Leisure and Citizen Services, we’re united by a shared purpose: to improve the services that communities rely on. Guided by our values of Trust, Care, Innovation and Pride, our people make meaningful impact, every single day.

Our Inclusive Recruitment Commitment

We prioritise your skills and potential. As a Disability Confident Leader, the Top Great British Employer of Veterans 2026, and a Gold Inclusive Employer Standard holder, we champion equal opportunities for all. We offer flexible and hybrid working where possible and make reasonable adjustments throughout recruitment and employment.

• Guaranteed Interview Scheme: Applicants with disabilities, veterans and people with convictions, who meet the minimum job criteria, are guaranteed an interview. Simply opt into the relevant scheme on the application form.
• Ban The Box: We also support fair access for those with unspent criminal convictions through our ‘Ban the Box’ pledge (some roles may have security exemptions).

For support with your application, please contact [e-mail].