Food & Beverage Assistant

English Heritage Ltd; East Cowes; On-site; GBP 40,000 - GBP 60,000; Part time

Job summary

A historic sites charity is seeking a Food and Beverage Assistant for part-time work at Osborne House. This role requires a passion for customer service and teamwork to prepare food and provide exceptional service in a beautiful setting. Ideal candidates should engage positively with people from all backgrounds and be enthusiastic about their responsibilities. Flexible scheduling available from March to November. Opportunities for career progression within the sector and a range of employee benefits included.

Benefits

Salary of £12.39 per hour, rising to £12.71 from April 2026

Free access to English Heritage sites

25% discount in shops and cafes

25 days’ holiday plus Bank Holidays pro rata

Matched pension contributions up to 10%

Qualifications

• Experience in a food and beverage role preferred but not essential.
• Engage positively with diverse customers.
• Passion for customer service is essential.

Responsibilities

• Prepare food and drink orders for visitors.
• Assist with kitchen operations and food preparation.
• Deliver exceptional customer service.
• Maintain high cleanliness and hygiene standards.

Skills

Customer service excellence

Teamwork

Food safety awareness

Job description

Overview

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Job details

Food & Beverage Assistant — Location Osborne House, York Avenue, East Cowes, Isle of Wight, PO32 6JY. Salary £12.39 per hour* / 21st March to 1st November / Fixed Term. All salaries will increase following the NLW rise on 1 April 2026 to a minimum of £12.71 per hour. Job type: Fixed Term Contract. Ref 16345.

Would you like to work for the charity that cares for hundreds of historic sites in every corner of England? We are looking for a Food and Beverage Assistant to join us at Osborne House.

No history background? No problem. What is important to us is a passion for people and excellent customer service. You will enjoy working with others as part of a team and understand what makes excellent customer service to deliver great quality through our food and unique settings.

Heritage is for everybody, and we are here for heritage.

Heritage lives in places and people, memories and stories, artefacts and traditions. It can connect us all to the past, and to each other. It can make us happier, strengthen every community, and help shape society for the better. Everybody should be able to enjoy the benefits it brings. That's why, as a charity, we care for over a million objects and hundreds of historic sites in every part of England, from international icons to local treasures. And it's why we open them up, share their stories and find new ways for everybody to enjoy, learn, play and create.

This is a part-time role working a minimum of 4 hours per week from 21st March to 1st November.

Responsibilities

• As a Food and Beverage Assistant, you will help to prepare food and drinks from the best of regional and local produce at Osborne, while working as part of a team to support the day-to-day operations.
• Duties may vary depending on the day, but you can expect to be:
• - Taking and preparing food and drink orders
• - Assisting with food preparation in our kitchen
• - Providing exceptional customer service
• - Ensuring a perfect standard of cleanliness and hygiene throughout

About you / Qualifications

• To be a Food and Beverage Assistant, you will:
• understand what makes excellent customer service and enjoy delivering this to our customers
• be able to engage in a positive way with people from all backgrounds
• enjoy working as a team
• Experience of working in a food and beverage role and an awareness of food safety and allergens would help but it isn't essential as full training will be provided. For us, it's more important that you have bags of enthusiasm and a willingness to get involved.

The Benefits

• Salary of £12.39 per hour, rising to £12.71 from 1st April 2026 to follow the NLW
• The opportunity to progress your career within the heritage sector, in retail, food and beverage or general management
• Opportunities to go to some of our great live music or history events
• Free access to all English Heritage sites for you and up to six friends/family members
• 25% discount in our shops and cafes
• Enhanced maternity/paternity/shared parental leave
• 25 days' holiday plus Bank Holidays pro rata rising to 28 days after 3 years
• Options to buy additional leave
• Matched pension contributions up to 10%

Application & notices

To find out more about us and what we do, please register via one of the links below join us at one of our webinars.

Friday 23rd January 2026 11.30am-12.30pm

https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/3ac4acf3-1db2-40d8-a81b-5c178615e5e6@30116e44-4d79-44c0-a8c1-ebc0707da3c9

Wednesday 4th February 2026 6-7pm

https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/ea661ca0-f117-46dd-8c83-af63e055008a@30116e44-4d79-44c0-a8c1-ebc0707da3c9

Everybody's welcome at English Heritage

Forget the stereotypes. It takes thousands of people from every background to care for England's heritage and open it up for everybody to enjoy. We're looking for every type of person with every kind of skill and experience, and we're committed to making sure that English Heritage is an equitable, diverse and inclusive place to work. You can connect with others through our EDI networks as a member or ally. These include Ethnic Diversity, Faith & Belief, Social Equity, LGBTQ+, Neurodivergence, Age, Disability and Gender Health and Wellbeing.

We take wellbeing seriously. We are committed to ensuring everyone feels safe at work and can carry out their role. To support this, we have a network of Mental Health First aiders, regular information and awareness events, unlimited access to an Employee Assistance Programme and work with our people to implement reasonable adjustments.

If you would like to talk to us e.g. about workplace adjustments or working patterns, please contact Tim Foster, Food & Beverage Manager on [e-mail]. No agencies please.

You can also find out about what we do: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/about/ and meet some of our people and hear about why they enjoy working with us: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/about/our-people/careers-with-us/

Interviews will take place at Osborne House on 6th, 7th and 8th March 2026.

You will need to refer to the following documents when completing your application.