School Chef jobs in Southampton

Take Our #FoodForGood Mission Across Southampton!

Do you have a passion for food, leadership, and variety in your working day?

At City Catering Southampton, we are passionate about providing high-quality, nutritious meals to children across Southampton and beyond. As a charity, we believe every child deserves the very best lunchtime experience — and we’re looking for an experienced, adaptable, and enthusiastic Mobile Head of Kitchen to support our kitchens across the city.

This is a rewarding and varied role where no two days are the same. You’ll work across multiple school sites, leading teams, supporting kitchens, covering absences, and helping us maintain our high standards of food quality and service.

Location: Various school locations across Southampton
Hours: 30 hours per week, Monday to Friday (7.30am-1.30pm)
Working Weeks: 39 weeks per year (term-time only)
Pay: £16.22 per hour

What You’ll Be Doing

No two days are the same! You’ll be responsible for:

· Planning, preparing, cooking, and serving nutritious meals to a consistently high standard

· Leading and supporting kitchen teams across a variety of school locations

· Providing cover for Head of Kitchen absences where needed

· Ensuring compliance with food safety, allergens, special diets, and health & safety procedures

· Managing stock control, ordering, and reducing food waste

· Building positive relationships with school staff, pupils, and parents

· Supporting special events, theme days, and promotional activities

· Assisting with training and development of kitchen staff

· Supporting Food Development teams with recipe trials and initiatives

· Maintaining accurate kitchen records and completing required administration

· Helping to support our charitable impact work during school holidays

What We’re Looking For

We’d love to hear from you if you are:

· Experienced in managing or leading kitchens, ideally within a school or catering environment

· Flexible and happy to travel between locations across Southampton

· Passionate about food quality and customer service

· A confident leader who can quickly adapt to different teams and environments

· Organised and able to work effectively under pressure

· Knowledgeable about food safety, allergens, and kitchen hygiene procedures

· Friendly, approachable, and professional

· Reliable, proactive, and solution-focused

A driving licence is essential for this role, along with previous supervisory or leadership experience. A Level 3 Food Hygiene Certificate would also be an advantage.

At City Catering Southampton, we are proud of our positive culture, high standards, and commitment to equality, safeguarding, and employee wellbeing.

Important Information

This role is subject to eligibility to work in the UK and an Enhanced DBS check due to working within school environments. The cost of the DBS check will be covered by the Charity.

We are actively seeking to increase diversity within our organisation and warmly welcome applications from people of all genders, sexual orientations, people from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds, disabled people, and those with lived experience of food poverty.

If you’re passionate about making a difference and want a varied leadership role delivering great food with care, we’d love to hear from you — apply today!

Pay: £16.22 per hour

Expected hours: 30.0 per week

Benefits:

• On-site parking

Application question(s):

• Have you had any experience of working with school catering before?
• Have you had any experience of leading a kitchen team before?

Licence/Certification:

• Level 3 Food Safety Certificate (preferred)
• Enhanced DBS Certificate (preferred)
• Driving Licence (required)

Work Location: In person