Assistant Chef

Richmond Villages; West Byfleet; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 24,000; Full time

Job summary

A care home provider in West Byfleet is seeking an Assistant Chef / 2nd Chef to prepare nutritious meals and manage the kitchen team. The ideal candidate will have a passion for cooking and relevant hygiene certifications. This position offers a salary range of £21,200 to £23,540, a £1,000 welcome bonus, and benefits like healthcare support and a sick pay scheme. Join us to create a warm dining experience for residents in a community-focused environment.

Benefits

Healthcare access

Annual healthcare allowance

Early access to earned wages

28 days holiday

Sick pay scheme

Free meals on shifts

Interest-free travel loans

Bupa pension plans

Parental leave

Menopause Plan

Gym discounts

Qualifications

• Experience in a fresh-food kitchen is essential.
• Relevant hygiene certifications are required.
• Ability to create varied and nutritional menus.

Responsibilities

• Create varied and nutritional menus based on dietary needs.
• Train and manage kitchen team in food preparation.
• Adhere to health and safety guidelines.

Skills

Passion for cooking

Experience in fresh-food kitchen

Excellent communication

Education

Relevant hygiene certificates

Job description

Assistant Chef / 2nd Chef

Oakcroft House Care Home, Oakcroft Road, West Byfleet, KT14 6J.

CQC rating: Good.

Carehome.co.uk rating: 9.7 / 10.

Salary: £21,200 – £23,540 depending on experience.

Contract: Permanent. 30 hours per week, 3 × 7.30 am – 6 pm, alternate weekends.

£1,000 welcome bonus.

Oakcroft House provides nursing, residential and short‑stay care. They’re there when you and your loved ones need them most. For planned respite or last‑minute trips, a safe space to recover after an operation, to experience what their home’s like before moving long‑term, or just to relax. Whatever the reason, their doors are open.

Close to the centre of West Byfleet village, the large house has many areas for residents to spend time in, and welcomes friends and family into the home. With wheelchair‑friendly pathways throughout the large garden, the surroundings are ideal for enjoying the summer months.

All bedrooms have ensuite facilities and are pleasantly decorated and furnished. There is an onsite library and residents also have access to Wi‑Fi, relaxation therapies, a nutritionist and an optician.

The chef produces tasty seasonal meals every day to ensure residents eat a variety of delicious and healthy food. There's a real sense of community at the home. The staff work to discover what residents enjoy doing and the home’s social calendar is organised around those interests. Dedicated activity coordinators help ensure residents are able to pursue their hobbies and interests, as well as organising a range of activities which include bingo, quizzes, flower arranging and music sessions. Regular trips to the garden centre are also enjoyed as are shopping trips and themed monthly events.

We make health happen

Here at Bupa we support those when they need it the most. Our care homes are dedicated to delivering person‑centred care, supporting independence and honouring choice to help our residents live their best lives.

Responsibilities

• Using your passion for cooking and fresh ingredients to create varied and nutritional menus in line with dietary needs and preferences of our residents.
• Putting forward ideas to deliver an excellent dining experience, helping our residents to feel at home.
• Training and managing the kitchen team in prepping, cooking and serving of food.
• Adhering to COSHH and HACCP guidelines, company policies and procedures, budgets, managing orders and deliveries.
• Catering for special events or seasonal activities, such as summer fetes, Christmas parties and birthdays (as required).

Qualifications

A passion for cooking with previous experience working in a fresh‑food kitchen and relevant hygiene certificates. You want to create and deliver an excellent dining experience at each meal and make our residents feel at home. Open to new ideas, you’ll have an innovative approach to cooking whilst always adhering to high standards. You’ll enjoy communicating with others and you’ll cherish the little moments with our residents, sharing your love of food with them.

Benefits

• My Healthcare – free access to 24/7 support, advice, and treatment for a variety of health‑related issues, including remote GP appointments, physiotherapy and mental health support.
• Annual allowance redeemable against a menu of Bupa healthcare products, valued at approximately £350.
• Wagestream – early access to up to 40% of your earned wages within minutes.
• 28 days holiday.
• We offer a sick pay scheme to our frontline teams, in addition to statutory sick pay.
• Long service – for every milestone at Bupa we reward you with e‑cards, extra holidays and money.
• Free meal on every shift.
• Interest‑free annual travel loan to enable the purchase of public transport season tickets.
• We offer a range of Bupa pension plans.
• Parental leave – we have schemes for adoption, birth parents and co‑parents.
• Menopause Plan – specifically designed to empower women to seek advice, choose their treatment and take control of their health.
• Access to discounts at a wide variety of gyms and fitness facilities across the UK.

Why Bupa?

We’re a health insurer and provider. With no shareholders, our customers are our focus. Our people are all driven by the same purpose – helping people live longer, healthier, happier lives and making a better world. We make health happen by being brave, caring and responsible in everything we do.

We encourage all of our people to Be you at Bupa, we champion diversity, and we understand the importance of our people representing the communities and customers we serve. That’s why we especially encourage applications from people with diverse backgrounds and experiences.

Bupa is a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. This means we aim to offer an interview/assessment to every disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria for the role.

Please note this role is not at or above RQF Level 3 and is not included under the UK’s Points Based Immigration System for sponsorship by an employer.

Your starter bonus will be paid to you in the next available pay run once you have completed four weeks’ service and will be subject to deductions for tax and NI.

Time type: Full time.

Job area: Oakcroft House.

Employment type: Full‑time.

Seniority level: Entry level.

Job function: Management and Manufacturing.

Location: Oakcroft House.