Working days Mon - Wed
JOB DESCRIPTION- NURSERY COOK
Responsible to: Office Manager
Accountable to: Managing Director and Nursery Manager
Ark Childcare is looking for an experienced cook with a passion for preparing fresh meals using fresh ingredients and the ability to cook healthy food from scratch following our established menu. The cook must have a natural warm personality to fit in with our friendly nursery.
The right candidate will be up to date with all environmental health guidelines and have awareness of allergies and allergens. You will be willing to complete training and refresh knowledge and will hold a level 3 Food Safety qualification. PVG is required.
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Key Responsibilities
- To organise, cook and prepare a healthy, balanced diet for children aged 0 to 14 years in accordance with the nursery menus.
- Take into consideration daily those children who have special dietary requirements and prepare a suitable alternative.
- Prepare a suitably balanced rotating menu taking into account dietary and cultural requirements of the children.
- Ensure high standards of hygiene, health and safety is maintained in the kitchen at all times.
AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
1. Operational Responsibilities
- To be responsible for the day-to-day running of the kitchen, ensuring compliance with registration and legislative requirements at all times.
- Responsible for the planning and preparation of food to provide meals in accordance with our nursery menus and food policies.
- Ensure that all individual dietary requirements are catered for in line with parental guidance.
- Maintain necessary kitchen procedures and records in accordance with Environmental Health policies and processes.
- Liaise with Office Manager on the ordering of necessary kitchen equipment.
- To undertake any other reasonable catering duties as requested by the Office/Care Manager.
- Ensure the kitchen and equipment is kept suitably clean at all times including walls, floors and trolleys to transport food following a cleaning schedule. On a daily basis that all crockery, cutlery and cooking utensils are washed in accordance with food safety guidelines.
- Ensure that all foods are ready at the specified time and correctly served.
- To implement and maintain the company’s equal opportunities policy ensuring that children, parents and the staff team are valued and practice is positive and nondiscriminatory.
- To monitor any safeguarding issues following local authority procedures. 2
- Work with the Care Manager to have a good understanding and follow Setting The Table Guidelines
2. Individual Accountability
- To ensure you have a clean uniform, including head wear, daily and wear suitable footwear for working in a busy kitchen space.
- To give daily feedback to the Office/Care Manager about the kitchen including any situation that may be detrimental to the company.
- Ensure the effective and regular removal of waste materials to the designated waste area.
- The ability to use food preparation equipment and ensure the economic use of materials, equipment and energy.
- The ability to work as part of a team and use your own initiative.
- The ability to manage your own time and prioritise tasks.
- Have a friendly, flexible approach.
- To have total responsibility of the kitchen, cleaning all of the equipment and appliances, take temperatures of the food, fridge and freezer and record these in the kitchen file.
3.Personnel
To establish good professional relationships with colleagues. Work with the Nursery Manager to implement and ensure that set budgets are not exceeded.
Responsible for control, storage and rotation of kitchen stock. Order food in conjunction with the Office Manager. The ability to order correct amounts of food and control kitchen stock. To prepare a bi weekly shopping list and correct storage of the food purchased
4. Training and Development
- To contribute to the team effort of the nursery and to attend staff meetings and social events as and when required.
- Commitment to undertaking appropriate training and continued professional development.
- To undertake future and refresher training as appropriate.
- Be professional, polite and positive in all verbal and non-verbal interactions with staff, parents and children at all times.
5. Health & Safety
- To ensure that the highest standards of health and safety apply to both children, staff, parents and visitor, maintaining a safe and secure environment.
- Ensure that hygiene and cleanliness within the kitchen is of the highest standard in accordance with Environmental Health requirements and legislation.
- Pay due attention to the cooks dress code: Hair to be tied back if touching your collar, no nail varnish, no false nails, no rings with the exception of the wedding band, trousers, nursery polo shirt and apron
- Maintain an awareness of food allergies keeping an up to date log of all children in the nursery, working with the care manager during new admissions.
- Update your knowledge and awareness of Health and Safety issues including COSHH regularly.
- To be responsible for the hygiene and support with Risk Assessment within the kitchen area.
- Prevent cross contamination of food within the kitchen area. Temperatures of highrisk food must be recorded at time of delivery and cooking. All food must be store and served at the temperatures required by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Food Safety.
6. Conditions of Employment
This Job Description is not intended to be a complete inventory of all the activities the jobholder would be expected to undertake. The post holder is required to comply with all the nursery’s policies and procedures and to meet his/her responsibilities under the Health & Safety at Work Act.
This Job Description will be subject to review and change in light of future developments.
The post holder will be actively involved in the review with the Office/Care Manager
Pay: £12.50-£13.00 per hour
Experience:
- Cooking: 1 year (preferred)
Licence/Certification:
- Driving Licence (preferred)
Work Location: In person
