Assistant Chef

Busy Bees In Portishead; Tees Valley; On-site; GBP 24,000 - GBP 30,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading nursery group in the UK is seeking an Assistant Chef in Tees Valley to prepare nutritious meals for young children. You will support kitchen operations and ensure food safety while contributing to a nurturing environment. The ideal candidate has experience in early years leadership, strong mentoring skills, and a passion for quality education. Join an award-winning workplace with excellent benefits including competitive salary and professional development opportunities.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Ongoing professional development and career progression

Employee Assistance Programme

25% childcare discount

Up to 28 days holiday per year

Wellbeing support resources

Qualifications

• Experience in leadership within early years settings is preferred.
• Strong mentoring and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to drive improvements and ensure compliance.

Responsibilities

• Prepare healthy, nutritious meals that meet dietary requirements for children.
• Support the Chef in overseeing kitchen operations and maintaining food safety.
• Ensure kitchen inventory is well-maintained and assist with ordering.
• Assist in cleaning and maintenance of kitchen equipment.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring

Problem-solving

Job description

Join Our Team at Busy Bees – Leading Nursery Group in the UK

Are you passionate about cooking and providing nutritious meals for young children? As an Assistant Chef at Busy Bees, you’ll be a key part of our kitchen team, preparing healthy meals that support children's growth and development. This is an exciting opportunity to work in a nurturing environment where you will contribute to the wellbeing of children while gaining valuable experience in catering within the early years sector.

About Us

Busy Bees is the UK's leading nursery group, with nearly 400 nurseries across the UK and more overseas. We are dedicated to giving every child the best start in life and are proud to have won awards for our workplace culture. At Busy Bees, we ensure that every member of our team feels heard, valued, and nurtured.

Why Work at Busy Bees?

We offer a supportive environment that empowers you to create engaging, educational spaces where children can thrive. As part of our team, you’ll be introduced to our unique Bee Curious curriculum, designed to foster curiosity and confidence in young learners.

Our Charitable Commitment

Through our partnership with BBC Children in Need, we offer fantastic opportunities for community involvement and fundraising to support children's lives.

About our Nursery

Our beautiful Stockton Bowesfield nursery has an Ofsted rating of Good, and has a capacity of 108. Our passionate team of staff strive in giving all the children the best start in life. We have strong links to charities in the area to support those in need. Located in a busy industrial area our purpose built building is in the suburbs of Stockton-on-Tees. We're on Cygnet Drive, which is a short distance from both the A66, A19, Stockton Town and Bowesfield Marsh and have a free onsite car park.

Busy Bees Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Ongoing professional development and career progression
• Our ‘Hive’ benefits and wellbeing hub, with discounts across a huge range of retailers
• Up to 28 days holiday per year (including bank holidays)
• Your birthday off – it’s our gift to you!
• 25% childcare discount
• Enhanced family leave and return to work bonus
• Menopause support through Peppy
• Financial support through Salary Finance
• Employee Assistance Programme and Mental Health First Aiders
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Easy access to your workplace pension through Cushon
• Discounted Private Medical Insurance (PMI)

But wait, there’s more! You’ll also enjoy access to our Benefits and Wellbeing platform, Hive - offering huge array huge of retail discounts helping your money to go further, along with a Wellbeing Hub featuring resources to support your physical and mental health. A Celebrating You section showcasing the ways we recognise and reward our valued team members. Plus, a dedicated Grow with Us area sharing the exciting development opportunities and training designed to support you to thrive and grow at Busy Bees.

Key Responsibilities

• Prepare healthy, nutritious meals that meet dietary requirements for children.
• Support the Chef in overseeing kitchen operations and maintaining food safety and hygiene standards.
• Ensure kitchen inventory is well-maintained and assist with ordering and stock management.
• Support meal preparation and assist in the cleaning and maintenance of kitchen equipment.

Ideal Candidate

• Ideally experience in leadership within early years settings.
• Strong mentoring and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to drive improvements and ensure compliance.

If you have a passion for leading teams and supporting quality education, apply today!