Are you a Chef looking for the perfect work-life balance? This opportunity might just be your perfect fit.

Become a valued member of our staff bank at Thornford Park Hospital in the role of Bank Chef and enjoy the flexibility to choose shifts that align with your schedule.

As a crucial part of the kitchen team, you’ll play a vital role in crafting daily meals for service users, staff and visitors. Dive into food preparation and elevate your role by providing guidance and training to your peers.

It’s a calm and pleasurable working environment, where you’ll be able to manage your workload and enjoy creating delicious meals. There’s a great social aspect to this role where you can interact with people outside the kitchen regularly. 

As a Bank Chef you will be: 

• Supporting the Head Chef for the day-to-day running of the kitchen.
• Maintaining good food storage procedures and stock rotation according to established procedures.
• Preparing, planning and cooking meals to a consistently high standard, taking account of any special requests or dietary requirements within the unit.
• Serving service users, staff and visitors with food and beverage in a professional and courteous services manner.
• Preparing and producing foods for conferences and banquets.
• Participating in food costings through effective cost control procedures.
• Adhering to the ‘Safer Food Better Business’ standards and record keeping.
• Adhering strictly to Food Hygiene Regulations and other safety procedures at all times.
• Taking full shift responsibility for the catering operation
• Assisting the Head Chef by researching and creating new menus ensuring meals are of a high quality and compliment healthy eating guidelines.
• Correctly filling of all paperwork in relation to the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system (HACCP) i.e. Fridge temperatures, food temperature logs and cleaning schedules

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• To be 18 years or older
• GCSE or equivalent English
• City & Guilds 706/1 and 2 (or equivalent) Basic Food Preparation Cooking
• Basic Food Hygiene
• Supervising qualification or working towards
• Experience preparing and producing quality food to a high standard
• Knowledge of menu planning and costing
• Previous experience in delivery a service on mass

Where you will be working:

Location: Thornford Park, Crookham Hill, Thatcham, Berkshire, RG19 8ET

You will be working at Thornford Park, a 130 bedded independent hospital which supports service users that require medium and low secure Forensic Mental Health Services. In addition to these services there is also a PICU Mental Health Service.

The service provides a seamless internal care pathway supporting and empowering people in their recovery and rehabilitation. Working alongside the multidisciplinary team, you will provide personalised assessment and treatment programmes for males with mental illness/complex care needs as well as those with personality disorder, and females and males in a PICU service.

What you will get:

• Hourly rate of £17 (including 12.07% holiday allowance uplift)
• Two-week paid induction
• Free meals and parking
• Mandatory training to ensure you are fully able to do your job at the best of your ability.
• Wellbeing support and activities to help you maintain a great work-life balance.
• Pension contribution to secure your future (Optional)

There is also the option to progress into a permanent role to unlock additional benefits, including career development pathways to grow your career.

About your next employer

You will be working for an established, stable and agile company with over 8,000 employees and a unique approach to the delivery of care. With a network of over 90 services across England and Wales covering Mental Health, Neurological, Learning Disabilities & Autism, Children & Education, there is opportunity for you to grow and move. 

Elysium Healthcare is part of Ramsay Health Care with a global network that extends across 10 countries and employs over 86,000 people globally. 

Elysium Healthcare follows safer recruitment of staff for all appointments. It is a requirement that all staff understand it is each person’s individual responsibility and are committed to promoting and safeguarding the welfare of service users. Candidates will be subject to an Enhanced DBS disclosure.