University of Birmingham
Sous Chef - Campus Services - 97937 - Grade 5
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Position Details
Campus Services
Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £30,062 to £31,900, with potential progression once in post to £35,883
Grade: 5
Part Time (1260 annualised hours)
Permanent
Closing date: 9th September 2026
Our offer to you
People are at the heart of what we are and do.
The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.
We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.
We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.
Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.
The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.
Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham [https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/jobs/staff-benefits]
Background
Business and Operations offers a variety of food and beverage outlets to staff, students and visitors across campus and student accommodation including but not limited to coffee shops, take-aways, bars, restaurants, food stalls, and kiosks. We also provide hospitality services for meetings, conferences and events held on campus. You will be responsible for preparing, producing and presenting food within these operations.
Role Summary
To work alongside and deputise for the Head Chef, contributing to the development of the culinary service, ensuring that food is prepared, produced and served to the required standards, and all supporting financial and administrative work is completed to the specified standard and in line with all relevant policies. In order to flexibly utilise resource you may be requested to work elsewhere in the department or wider University.
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Main Duties
Leadership
- In conjunction with the Head Chef responsibility for food production and delivery in designated areas of responsibility.
- You will be responsible for delivering an excellent culinary service and for training, coaching and supporting staff to do the same.
- Encouraging participation from staff in developing goals and plans.
- Planning delivery, delegating as appropriate to ensure smooth flow of culinary operations and allow consistent delivery of excellent quality food.
- Ensuring the kitchen can cope with periods of high volume or unusual events.
- Planning the implementation of operational budgets devised by the Food and Beverage Management Team and Head Chef.
- Proactively reviewing the culinary service and key business indicators to identify opportunities for improvement.
- Carry out regular job chats and performance and development reviews with the team, or ensure others do so, ensuring compliance with the Universities policies and procedures.
Planning and Execution
- Proactively monitors the menus on offer, ensuring the food offer is kept relevant, and meets customer needs (taking into account customer feedback).
- You will ensure effective communication across the culinary team, cascading messages as appropriate.
- Working closely with the Head Chef you will make sure that resources are used effectively and efficiently, seeking opportunities to increase sales, maintain margins and control costs.
- Design and produce weekly or monthly staff rotas as required.
- Actively manage and motivate staff by regularly providing feedback and setting objectives to improve staff performance.
- Manage ongoing staff performance using performance management tools to support organisational objectives.
- Developing and producing menus and new dishes in conjunction with the Head Chef.
- Liaising with Pelican (purchasing companies) for food orders.
Policies, Procedure and Health and Safety
- Responsible for ensuring stock is monitored and rotated, food is used before best before dates and that wastage is minimised.
- Responsible for monthly food stock take.
- Responsible for ensuring the team complies with all relevant Health and Safety legislation and any local departmental policies, taking corrective action on any breaches. These will include Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) regulations, the hygiene recording system, and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) hygiene and allergen recording system.
- Promptly reporting equipment failure and taking action to ensure repairs are undertaken to minimise “downtime”.
- Ensuring high standards of hygiene are maintained in the workplace.
- Contributing to team briefings and departmental meetings.
- To undertake any other reasonable duties/requests as requested from a manager.
- Treats everyone with dignity and respect in line with current equality legislation.
- Respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures.
- Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity duties document [https://bham.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/HRDC/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc={7c460d71-5114-45aa-b9dd-1692b59aeea4}&action=default&mobileredirect=true]
Operational requirements
- Hours as required based on 35 hour week 7/365 operation (BH and Closure days) on a rota basis, includes weekend and evening work activities to align with Campus Services and University.
- To participate in the BOPS duty management rota (7/365).
- To undertake works activities across all UoB campuses as requested that are commensurate with the grade and role activities to support the Division and wider UoB activities.
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Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience
- NVQ in Food Preparation level 3 (or the equivalent City and Guilds qualification)
- Substantial proven experience of working within a food preparation environment which includes experience of working as a chef de partie that will enable you to carry out the duties to the expected standards
- Knowledge of the following is essential: Health and Safety at Work Act, Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) hygiene and allergen recording systems, COSHH and a relevant Manual Handling course
- Experience of costing menus, recipes and food ordering
- A good level of literacy and numeracy. This can be evidenced by achieving Mathematics and English GCSE at grade C/4 (or equivalent level 2 qualification) or able to demonstrate relevant experience such that the tasks detailed in the job description can be carried out effectively
- Food Safety Certificate level 4
- Supervisory experience, preferably in a food preparation environment
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Ability to suggest improvements in terms of efficiency, safety or service
- PC literate and familiar with the Microsoft Office Suite of programmes
- You should also have the ability to work on an individual basis within a team environment
- An understanding of the importance of equality and diversity in the workplace
- Ability to present yourself well at work: a uniform will be provided to assist in this
- Understands the importance of equality and diversity in the workplace
- Ability to identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant university policies and procedures relating to equality and diversity.
- Other relevant criteria from our equality and diversity knowledge, skills and experience document [https://bham.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/HRDC/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc={7c460d71-5114-45aa-b9dd-1692b59aeea4}&action=default&mobileredirect=true].
Dimensions
This role will have responsibility for the day to day leadership of a team, ensuring the delivery of an excellent service and contribution to the development of the service and menus offered.
Planning and organising
You will plan your own and others workloads, monitor the service performance, organising staff to deliver an excellent service, and taking corrective action if issues arise.
Problem solving and decision making
You will need to be able to solve problems which arise and customer complaints on your own initiative. You will also be able to take action to rectify Health and Safety issues, place daily and weekly orders, and dealing with staff sickness and similar issues again on your own initiative.
Internal and external relationships
You will work closely with the Head Chef in developing the service, and have day to day responsibility for your team.
Informal enquiries to Paul Footman, email: p.r.footman@bham.ac.uk [p.r.footman@bham
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