Nursery Cook / Chef – Monday to Friday, No Weekends
£12.71 per hour | 37.5 paid hours per week
Monday to Friday, 8:15am–4:15pm
No evenings or weekends
Permanent, full-time position
Finchley Central, London N3 1QN
Are you a confident cook looking for a better work–life balance?
Would you enjoy preparing fresh, nutritious food without working late evenings or weekends?
ELY Nursery is looking for a friendly and reliable Cook or Chef to join our vegetarian nursery kitchen in Finchley Central.
This could be a great opportunity for someone currently working in a restaurant, café, school, care home, catering company or commercial kitchen who would like more sociable and predictable working hours.
You do not need previous nursery experience. What matters most is that you can confidently prepare fresh food, work safely and bring a positive attitude to our close-knit team.
What we offer
- Monday-to-Friday daytime hours
- No evening or weekend shifts
- A permanent, full-time position
- £12.71 per hour
- 37.5 paid hours each week
- A friendly, family-run working environment
- The opportunity to suggest dishes and contribute to our menus
- Support from an experienced nursery chef
- Training and professional development
- Staff meals while working
- Workplace pension
- Holiday entitlement
- Enhanced DBS check arranged as part of the recruitment process
About the role
You will work alongside our experienced chef to prepare fresh vegetarian meals and snacks for the children at ELY Nursery.
Our kitchen prepares two hot meals each day, along with nutritious snacks. You will help ensure that every meal is tasty, balanced, age-appropriate and prepared safely.
We want someone who takes pride in their cooking and enjoys contributing new ideas. You will not simply be expected to follow the same menu without question. If you have a dish that you think the children would enjoy, we would love to hear about it.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Preparing fresh vegetarian meals and snacks
- Working with our existing chef to plan and improve menus
- Preparing food suitable for babies and young children
- Adapting meals for allergies and dietary requirements
- Following allergy procedures carefully and consistently
- Ensuring food is prepared and served safely and on time
- Maintaining excellent kitchen cleanliness and hygiene
- Completing temperature checks and kitchen records
- Supporting with food orders, deliveries and stock rotation
- Monitoring stock and helping to reduce food waste
- Communicating with nursery staff about menus and dietary needs
- Following food hygiene, safeguarding and health and safety procedures
About you
We would love to hear from you if you:
- Can confidently prepare meals from fresh ingredients
- Have experience working in a kitchen or catering environment
- Understand food hygiene and safe food preparation
- Are organised and able to manage your time effectively
- Are dependable, punctual and comfortable working as part of a team
- Take allergies and dietary requirements seriously
- Enjoy being creative and sharing new ideas
- Are willing to listen to feedback and adapt meals for young children
Experience in a nursery, school or care setting would be helpful, but it is not essential.
A Food Hygiene qualification would be beneficial. Training can be discussed with the successful candidate.
About ELY Nursery
ELY is a warm, family-run nursery that has been part of the Finchley community since 2002.
We are a fully vegetarian setting and pride ourselves on giving children fresh, nutritious food in a caring, home-from-home environment.
The nursery was founded by parents whose four children all attended ELY. One of those children is now our Operations Director, so the nursery remains a genuinely personal and family-led organisation.
Our parents regularly describe ELY as a “home from home” and a “second home.” We want every child to leave us happy, well-fed and excited to return the following day.
Safeguarding
ELY Nursery is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The successful applicant will be required to complete safer recruitment checks, including an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references.
Apply today
Please apply with your CV and a short introduction telling us:
- What kitchen or cooking experience you have
- Why daytime nursery catering appeals to you
- When you would be available to start
We would be delighted to hear from experienced chefs, cooks, kitchen assistants and catering professionals who are ready to take the next step in their career.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: £12.71 per hour
Benefits:
Ability to commute/relocate:
- London N3 1QN: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Experience:
- Chef: 1 year (preferred)
- Cooking: 1 year (preferred)
- Kitchen experience: 1 year (preferred)
Work Location: In person
