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ROLE: Primary Catering Manager

SCHOOL: Wickersley Partnership Trust (School to be confirmed)

SALARY: WPT Band 4  £26403 - £28142 (£17284 - £18422 pro-rata)

CONTRACT: Permanent

HOURS: 27.5, term time only plus all inset days

Are you a talented chef with a passion for fueling young minds? We are looking for an organised and skilled Primary Catering Manager to lead our kitchen team, ensuring that every child receives a nutritious, delicious, and high-quality meal to power them through their school day.

About WPT 

At Wickersley Partnership Trust (WPT), we are fueled by a single commitment: 'We never knowingly do less for other people’s children than we would for our own.' As a thriving network of schools across South Yorkshire, we combine high expectations with embedded inclusivity. We do not work in silos; instead, we rely on deep collaboration and school-to-school support to ensure every student develops socially, emotionally, and academically to achieve the highest standards.

About the Role 

As the Primary Catering Manager, you will be the heart of the school kitchen. You will take full responsibility for the preparation and service of meals, ensuring they meet the Trust’s high standards and are consistent with our cookbook and recipes. This is a leadership role where you will manage the kitchen team, oversee hygiene and safety, and control stock. Importantly, this role focuses purely on food and service quality—there is no requirement for cash handling or banking. You will ensure the kitchen runs smoothly, waste is minimised, and the team represents the professional image of the school at all times.

Responsibilities

• Food Preparation & Service: Prepare, cook, and present high-quality meals for pupils, staff, and functions in strict accordance with WPT recipes and menus.

• Hygiene & Operations: Maintain exceptional standards of health, hygiene, and safety, managing stock to minimise waste and overseeing the daily cleaning of the kitchen.

• Team Management: Lead the kitchen staff to ensure a professional service, managing daily workflows and reporting staffing issues or absences to the Group Manager.

• Reporting: Maintain necessary records for meal reconciliation and safety compliance documentation, ensuring accurate reporting to the office (with no cash handling required).

The successful candidate should have a Food Hygiene qualification and proven experience in catering (experience in an educational or large-scale setting is desirable).

Why Join Us?

• Competitive salary

• Generous Local Government (support staff) and Teacher Pension Schemes

• Health and Wellbeing, including a Westfield Health subscription

• Professional Growth and Development

***Closing Date: Noon, Wednesday 7th January 2026***

For further information and to apply, please visit our recruitment website: https://recruitment.wickersleypt.org

For more information about Wickersley Partnership Trust, including the benefits of working for us, please visit our main website: https://www.wickersleypt.org

We may conduct interviews as applications are received, and this vacancy may be withdrawn without notice. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

In line with our commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our students, the appointment will be subject to an enhanced criminal record check and satisfactory references. Further information about the Disclosure Scheme can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/disclosure-and-barring-service

Please note that we operate a safer recruitment policy and do not accept CVs. All applicants must complete an application form in full.

**Please upload a supporting statement which should be no longer than two sides of A4 (this should not be a CV), clearly demonstrating:

Why are you applying for this position

How you meet the competencies of this role using examples from your current and previous experience (please refer to the documents attached to the advert)

Any information which you consider relevant that you have not already mentioned