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Job Title:  School Chef 

Location:  Yiewsley Grange School, West Drayton UB7 7QP

Salary:      £26,000.00 per annum (not pro rata)

Hours:      38.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday

Contract:  Permanent, Term Time only

Start:         September 2025

UK applicants only. This role does not offer sponsorship.

As part of our continued growth, we are excited to offer a fantastic opportunity for a School Chef to join our close-knit team at Yiewsley Grange School, part of Options Autism.

This is a great chance to be part of a dedicated and supportive team, making a real difference every day.

If you or someone you know is passionate about providing nutritious, high-quality meals in a nurturing school environment, we’d love to hear from you.

About the Role

In this key role, you will be responsible for planning and preparing high-quality food and catering services for the School, as well as managing and supervising all kitchen staff. This is a rewarding position that combines culinary skills with leadership and the chance to make a meaningful impact on the wellbeing of our students and staff.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan menus that cater to the dietary needs of our Service Users.
• Monitor food stocks with careful attention to date rotation, portion control, quality, and budgetary guidelines.
• Set up and clean down the kitchen area before and after daily use.
• Ensure appropriate food preparation is completed for daily and weekly needs.
• Be mindful of and actively work to minimise food waste.
• Provide appropriate meals for staff and Service Users with special dietary requirements.

Who We’re Looking For

The ideal candidate will bring both experience and passion to the role, along with:

Knowledge & Skills

• Strong understanding of catering practices, including correct use and storage of food products.
• Solid knowledge of food safety requirements.
• Ability to create and maintain effective systems of work.

Experience

• Previous catering experience in an educational, residential, or similar setting.
• Experience in menu planning with a focus on nutrition and budgetary control.
• Proven experience at a management level in a similar environment.
• Experience supervising and appraising staff.

This is a great opportunity for a dedicated and experienced chef to become part of a supportive, high-impact environment

About Us

At Yiewsley Grange, we provide specialist education for 185 pupils. Within Yiewsley Grange we deploy a wide range of teaching strategies to engage and develop the progress of learners, who present with a range of learning difficulties and styles. Our pupils are taught in smaller class sizes and all students work towards an Equals Semi-Formal Curriculum and equivalent qualifications in functional skills.

Yiewsley Grange School is a part of the Hillingdon Grange group of schools. Located over four sites, the group provides education from early years up to KS2 and offers a unique mix of education and support to pupils within a wide spectrum of needs and abilities. Personalised teaching and learning in an autism-specific environment allows pupils’ individual needs to be addressed completely and their capabilities fully realised.

For over 16 years Options Autism have provided care and education to pupils and adults with autism, complex needs and learning difficulties. As part of Outcomes First Group, we are leading our sector in setting and delivering new approaches that provide measurable outcomes for those in our care. 

We are really proud to say that in 2024, Outcomes First Group were officially certified as a ‘Great Place to Work’ for the fifth year running.

Why join Options Autism? 

Benefits

Your health and wellbeing are important to us, so you’ll get an exceptional reward package including:

• Life Assurance
• Pension scheme with options to increase your contributions
• “Your Wellbeing Matters” – access to a wide range of first-class mental health support services and physical health checks

And a market-leading benefit offering through our Flexible Benefits Platform, Vista, enables you to choose the package that’s right for you, including:

• A wide range of health, wellbeing, and insurance benefits
• 100’s of discount options valid in the UK and abroad
• Cycle to Work Schemes
• Electric Car Purchase Scheme
• Critical illness cover
• Family Growth Support - inclusive benefits package covering enhanced maternity and paternity leave, along with paid fertility treatment support.

And that’s not all, we place the outcomes of the pupils in our services at the heart of everything we do, so you’ll wake every day in the knowledge that your role will have a significant positive impact on the lives of others. 

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of pupils. All applicants will be subject to social media checks and successful applicants to a fully enhanced DBS.

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.

Outcomes First Group is committed to carrying out a fair, thorough and efficient recruitment process in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education. Whilst we aim to keep applicants informed throughout, Outcomes First Group does not accept liability for any loss of earnings or other associated costs incurred by applicants as a result of delays or changes in the compliance process. All stages of the compliance process are subject to necessary safeguarding checks and compliance with statutory requirements, which may affect timescales.

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