CATERINGCOORDINATOR
APPLICATION PACK – September 2016
SUMMARY
Back on Track works withex-offenders and other disadvantaged adults in Greater Manchester, supporting them to change their lives through education, training and employment. For this post we are looking for an experienced catering supervisorand teacher to run our café project and catering training programmes and enterprise, enabling ex-offenders and other disadvantaged adults to build their confidence and prepare for employment. Although this is a fixed term contract until June 2017, we are actively seeking funding to continue this vital role beyond that date.
RECRUITMENT TIMETABLE
Application process - deadline for receipt of applications is 12 noon on Monday 24thOctober 2016. Please send a completed application form, ensuring that you set out how you meet the person specification. CVs will not be accepted.
Please send your application form to:
Adrian Shaw, Administration Worker
Back on Track, 4th Floor Swan Buildings, 20 Swan Street, Manchester. M4 5JW
Email to
Informing shortlisted candidates
We will provide full details about the interview and practical task for shortlisted candidates by the end of the day on Tuesday 25th October 2016.
Back on Track is not able to acknowledge receipt of applications. If you have not heard from us by this date, please assume that unfortunately your application has not been successful at this point.
If you are not shortlisted and would like feedback on your application, please note that it can take us up to two months to send feedback as we will be busy with the rest of the recruitment process.
Interview and assessment – Monday 31st October (pm) OR Tuesday 1st November 2016
The interview and assessment will take the form of:
-a tour and informal discussion session with service users
-a practical task, such as a micro-teach
-an interview with a panel
Any questions
If you want to find out more about Back on Track’s work, please take the following steps:
1) Read the application pack thoroughly
2) Visit our website
3) If you want to make an informal visit, please come along to one of our weekly drop-in sessions every Tuesday from 1pm-3pm. (Please note, this is an open drop-in session providing an opportunity to find out more about the organisation in general. You will not necessarily be able to speak to anyone about this role.)
4) If after reading the pack and checking our website you have any remaining questions about the post, please contact Rachel Gilkes, Senior Enterprise Coordinatorby email on
Job description – Catering Co-ordinator
Background
Back on Track is a registered charity, providing first steps education and work experience for adults in Greater Manchester who face multiple barriers to employment. Back on Track’s services are targeted at adults who are going through a rehabilitation or recovery process, because of problems such as substance misuse, criminal conviction, mental illness or homelessness. Back on Track’s services are:
-A busy education centre in Manchester city centre, providing user-friendly courses in subjects such as computers, literacy and numeracy, music, cookery
-Introductory vocational training plus work experience sessions, enabling disadvantaged adults to gain skills for work
-Outreach work (in probation offices, hostels, drug and alcohol services, etc) to engage disadvantaged adults in learning and skills activities
-Traineeships and volunteering opportunities providing real opportunities for work within our own services and in partner organisations
-Pathways into college, mainstream volunteering and employment.
Back on Track aims to provide an effective ‘bridge’ from a life dominated by problems, to a successful life where people can fulfil their potential and make a positive contribution to society through volunteering or work.
Expansion of catering activity at Back on Track
-We undertook a review of our catering activity in 2013 which identified the need to expand the catering ‘journey’ for service users. Our needs assessment showed that that there are entry level jobs in Greater Manchester in catering and hospitality which are realistic employment opportunities for our service users; a high number of service users each year are interested in exploring catering and hospitality as a career; and that there were ‘gaps’ in our provision (e.g. gap between initial work experience taster session and readiness for mainstream employment). We undertooka feasibility study and identified that an in-house café within our training centre was a viable proposition.
-In 2015 we expanded our catering training facilities, to offer more realistic work experience for service users and volunteers. We refurbished our kitchen and café area to a professional standard and started trading in September 2015, introducing a daily hot food menu in January 2016. In April 2016 we started an external catering enterprise providing hot and cold buffets for MACC’s training rooms in Swan Buildings, and we also started trading at markets in Manchester.
-The majority of our catering and café volunteers have previously used Back on Track services, and are volunteering to gain skills for work and build their confidence in order to progress onto paid employment.
Due to the promotion of the previous post holder, we are now seeking a suitably experienced individual to take over the running of the café and catering enterprise with a team of volunteers, and the delivery of the cookery, catering and hospitality courses.
Catering Co-ordinator post
You will be implementing the two-year project to develop the catering journey for service users at Back on Track. Although this is a fixed term contract until June 2017, we are actively seeking funding to continue this vital role beyond that date.
You will be overseeing most aspects of the catering journey:
-Managing an in-house café and catering enterprise within the training centre (run as a trading enterprise).
-Delivering taster sessions and cookery courses (six week sessions) for service users who are at an early stage of engagement
-Delivering a 12 session Catering and Hospitality training programme for those who are considering / preparing for work, volunteering ora college course
Café and catering operating model
As Catering Co-ordinator, you will be responsible for managing the in-house café and catering enterprise within our centre. As Catering Co-ordinator your focus will be on the behind-the-scenes management of the café: developing menus, products and pricing; overseeing the staffing rota; overseeing operating standards (i.e. hygiene, customer service) through effective systems; and managing supplies.
We have developed a staffing model which maximises opportunities for service users and volunteers to gain work experience at increasing levels of challenge and responsibility.
Day to day staffing of the café and catering will be undertaken by:
-Catering Assistant apprentice – who will provide a stable day-to-day presence in the café, also assisting with other aspects of the catering project.
-Volunteer shift leaders – volunteers who are able to take on the position of leading the café team for half a day a week. This provides a move-on opportunity for those who have completed training and are ready for a position of responsibility.
-Café / catering volunteers – who are able to commit to a regular shift assisting in the café/kitchen each week (e.g. every Tuesday morning)
-Service users undertaking work experience – during agreed points in the week, there will be opportunities for service users to undertake work experience.
The café serves drinks and food to existing users of the Back on Track education centre (staff, volunteers, visitors, service users), whilst the catering enterprise provides buffets by order for people booking the MACC training rooms in Swan Buildings.
Teaching cookery / catering programmes
Another key part of your role, working with the Education Team, will be to deliver taught courses to service users and volunteers:
-Cookery courses for service users looking to try something new or improve their skills at cooking for themselves
-An introductory vocational training programme ‘Introduction to Catering and Hospitality’, including an accredited qualification
-Regular one-day courses in Food Hygiene
-Initial training programme for café volunteers, covering customer service as well as catering standards.
You therefore need to be a confident and enthusiastic teacher, able to work with participants at a range of levels, and committed to continually improving your teaching skills. You will be delivering taught courses for an average of 2.5 days each week.
Job purpose –Catering Co-ordinator
To oversee and deliver the catering journey for service users at Back on Track, including the Back on Track café / catering and the suite of cookery / catering courses
Responsible to:Senior Enterprise Coordinator
Responsible for:A) Manage the in-house café and catering enterprise(including the café team)
B) Plan and deliver catering / cookery courses
C) Other duties.
Line manager to:Catering Assistant Apprentice; Café Volunteers
Main place of work:Swan Buildings, Manchester, though the postholder will also work in other settings across Greater Manchester
Key Responsibilities
A) MANAGE THE IN-HOUSE CAFE
1.Ensurethe smooth daily running of the café and catering enterprise
-Take overall responsibility for the smooth daily running of the café
-Maintain a rota for staffing the café and kitchen
-Ensure there are comprehensive guidelines for all aspects of the daily running of the café by the apprentice / volunteers
-Ensure high standards of food hygiene at all times
-Ensure excellent customer service at all times within the café.
2. Manage the café ‘offer’ in terms of menu, products and allied activities
-Take responsibility for the product menu ‘offer’ of the café and catering enterprise, which meets customer needs and reaches trading targets
-Gather feedback from customers and report back on action taken
-Produce customer-facing material (e.g. signage, leaflet, menus) which set out the café and catering ‘offer’
-Oversee agreed level of catering service for other meetings and events at Back on Track.
3. Manage staff and volunteers within the café and kitchen
-Manage and provide mentoring support to the Catering Apprentice,
-Act as named Volunteer Supervisor for the Café Volunteers
-Providea thorough induction andon-the-job training and supervision for Café Volunteers and service users undertaking work experience
4. Oversee supplies, facilities and budgets
-Take responsibility for ordering stock and monitoring waste, working with the Office Manager around BonT’s purchasing and finance systems
-Oversee the café facilities and environment
-Oversee effective systems for sales and cash handling within the café
-Manage agreed elements of the café budget, ensuring that the café meets its trading targets
B) CO-ORDINATE AND DELIVER TAUGHT SESSIONS
5. Manage the training kitchen environment and facilities at Back on Track
-Take responsibility for managing the training kitchen environment
-Oversee the maintenance of food hygiene standards within the kitchen environment, setting up checklists and guidelines as necessary
-Oversee equipment and resources within the training kitchen, developing proposals and plans for improving resources as needed
-Oversee layout and storage within the training kitchen
6. Work with colleagues to plan and deliver learning sessions
-Undertake planning for courses (scheme of work, lesson plan)
-Undertake initial assessment with learners, and set up individual learning plans
-Deliver sessions which maximise learning and achievement
-Co-ordinate the work of Learning Support Volunteers in sessions
-Liaise with other project staff about learner needs and barriers.
7. Manage the course administration, learning environment and resources within sessions
-Ensure there is a basic level of resources and consumables in place for learning activities
-Work with colleagues to ensure that the physical environment of the session is safe and conducive to learning
-Manage behaviour within sessions and actively promote equality and diversity
-Keep good and timely records of attendance and learning (planning, registers, individual record-keeping, accreditation, feedback from learners)
C) OTHER DUTIES
9. Contribute to excellence and quality improvement within the service
-Keep effective records of activities using agreed systems, and produce reports
-Produce and share learning resources
-Co-operate with observations of own teaching, and engage in constructive discussion about own teaching practice
10. Contribute to the smooth running of Back on Track’s services
-Contribute to day-to-day running of services and provide cover for colleagues as needed
-Contribute to generic project worker tasks (e.g. publicity visits)
-As Back on Track is a small organisation, it is expected that the postholder will be flexible and willing to take on other tasks as required.
Person specification -Catering Co-ordinator
Please ensure that you address each point in full on your application form.
Essential criteria
Experience and ability
-Experience of working at a supervisory level within a catering environment
-Recent knowledge of the regulatory environment around catering, to ensure compliance with health and safety, food hygiene and COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) regulations at all times.
-A strong track record of delivering training in catering to diverse groups of adults
-Ability to manage challenging behaviour in a group
Knowledge and qualifications
-A qualification in Catering/Professional Cookery or equivalent
-A Level 4 qualification in teaching adults or willingness to work towards this
Personal qualities/skills
-Ability take the initiative in organising, planning and prioritising workload effectively
-Good administrative and organisational skills
-Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal skills
-Good numeracy and ICT skills(including familiarity with the MS Office suite of programmes)
-Commitment to personal and professional development, including an ability to reflect on own performance and respond to constructive feedback
-Non-judgemental attitude and commitment to equality of opportunity
Desirable:
-Experience of volunteer management
-Experience of working with people with complex needs including offenders
Where the post holder is disabled every effort will be made to supply all necessary aids, adaptations or equipment to allow them to carry out all the duties of the role.
This role is subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. We will ask applicants to declare any past convictions (including spent convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings.) We are not allowed to employ someone in this role who is barred from working with vulnerable adults.
We are very committed to the reintegration of ex-offenders into the workplace. Back on Track has volunteers / staff who do have a criminal record but we need to take any convictions into account when deciding if this role is suitable.
MAIN TERMS OF SERVICE
Accountability
The postholder will be responsible to the Senior Enterprise Coordinator at Back on Track.
Duration of Contract
This is a fixed term contract until 30th June 2017.
Salary
The postholder will be appointed on points 27-31 on the NJC scale (currently £23,935 - £27,394 per annum), depending on qualifications / experience relevant to this role. Back on Track does not offer automatic annual incremental rises, which are only awarded to recognise a significant increase in responsibilities.
Pension
All staff are automatically enrolled onto the organisation’s affliated pension scheme when they commence employment at Back on Track. Staff have the option to opt out of the pension scheme within one month of commencing employment. The default level of employee pension contribtuion is 4% with Back on Track matching the 4%, additional matched contributions can be made of a further 2% via salary sacfifice. (Please note, we are not able to contribute to a private pension scheme.)
Hours of work
Full time - 35 hours per week, to be worked across Monday to Friday as agreed with your line manager. This post will involve a small amount of evening and weekend work (e.g. running occasional market stalls at weekends), for which time off in lieu applies.
Place of work
The person appointed will be based at Swan Buildings, Swan Street. Manchester, M4 5JW, but may be required to travel to other venues across Greater Manchester.
Probationary period
There will be a three month probationary period to ensure that duties are being performed satisfactorily. Back on Track reserves the right to extend the probationary period if needed.
Period of Notice
During the probationary period, one week either way. After successful completion of the probationary period, notice of termination must be given at least one month in advance either way.
Holiday Entitlement
Full time staff at Back on Track are entitled to bank holidays plus an annual entitlement of 25 days per year (increasing by one day per year for each completed year of service at 1 April of each year, up to a maximum of 30 days per year), plus 3 discretionary days during the Christmas closure period.
Equal Opportunities
Back on Track is fully committed to the active promotion of equal opportunities in its capacity as an employer and in the provision of all its services, both to disadvantaged adults and to the community as a whole. It is the individual responsibility of every member of staff to seek to ensure the practical application of this policy.
Health and Safety
Under the Health and Safety at Work Act, all employees are required both to take care of their own health and safety and to co-operate with their employers in complying with this act.