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Chef
Chef – Short Term Cover at Vale of York Academy & York Area
About IFG
We’re IFG, one of the fastest-growing education catering companies in the UK. In 2023, we won Education Caterer of the Year at the Foodservice Catey Awards. But we don’t fill you with empty praise—we want the one thing we crave:
Awesome people who can help us feed more children better food.
This isn’t about school meals—it’s about making good food that people love.
The Role
Position Summary
Reporting directly to the Chef Manager at Vale of York Academy, this temporary yet rewarding role covers 30 hours per week (Monday–Friday, 8am–2pm) during term time (39 weeks/year).
Our mission isn’t just about uniforms and menus—it’s about quality, fresh, seasonal cooking with a passion for impact.
Key Responsibilities
- Cook from our signature fresh, seasonal menu—from scratch
- Maintain strict food safety hygiene standards (level 2+ required)
- Assist the on-site Chef Manager with:
- Large-scale main meal and snack preparation (200+ volume)
- Menu adjustments for dietary needs and student preferences
- Raffle counter and till operations when required
- Uphold aspirational kitchen standards, ensuring premises remain clean, organised and inspectable at all times
What You’ll Bring
✅ Proven background in primary/secondary school or commercial catering ✅ Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, multi-level environment while retaining minimum standards ✅ Success in high-volume cooking with fresh ingredients ✅ Initiative in working with limited resources—creativity, not excuses, wins here ✅ British Cookery Society Level 2 Food Hygiene Certification (mandatory)
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Bonus Points:
- Previous school catering experience
- Understanding of school-specific matters, like free school meal programmes
About You…
Core Traits
We haven’t arrived at the top by surrounding ourselves with “trained professionals”—we’ve elevated things by pairing dedication with people who love kitchen life. Our badges? Real, working in traditional school environments since 2016.
If you can prove you’ve: ✔ Obtained estaurant-quality results in a primary/school setting ✔ Adopted an approach that guards children’s interests first ✔ Setup kitchen would shine in every inspection—let’s chat.
This role isn’t for someone who scrapes by, it’s for those elevating food—making kids take that first (healthy) bite.
What’s in it for You?
- Location & Hours: Your choice to work flexibly in the York area during the day, with weekends and evenings your own
- Pay: £17,092.50/year (contract pays 30h at hourly rate)
- Perks:
- Meals on shift (free)
- Subsidised uniform
- Comprehensive pension scheme
- No interview fees
- Mileage paid at 45p/mile
- Growth: We reward efforts we love—development opportunities abound!
- Free training & qualifications
- All staff have access to our £850+ pounds Retailer Discount Scheme
- Monthly competitions with award vouchers (awarded to top-performing teams!)
- Real job progression in a company celebrated for career support
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Bonus: Full 6-week summer holiday—no teaching summer blooms needed here!
Next Steps
If keeping things fast-paced yet fair excites you…
Apply now! To succeed, your interview will include a kitchen test (no frocks required by us—just cooking an eye-wateringly good restaurant meal under pressure).
Vital – Read This
- COVID Safety Meets ‘Safeguarding’: IFG’s enhanced DBS checks (kids’ barred list included) are required for all roles interacting with students—we as the employer pay for this.
- Equal Opportunities: Interviews fully accessible. Disability needs should be shared openly in your application—we will meet and accommodate quietly.
- Caters For GDPR: Strictly only application materials are handled, everything secured in accordance with data protection laws.
Ready to join a team that nurses the kids-and-continents? Click Apply Now. (Link would be here.)
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