Catering Manager

About us…

The Green Britain Centre is a Norfolk based visitor, conference and education centre. Housed in a modern landmark timber-framed building, the Centre’s mission is to inform, educate and empower people – to take the small and big steps towards sustainability and helping create a Green Britain.

The Centre’s attractions include the only full scale windmill in the World that the public can climb, record breaking wind and electric powered vehicles, organic gardens, a café, a fully equipped cinema/theatre and a range of meeting rooms for up to 200 people.

The Centre’s programme of educational activities caters for people of all ages and abilities.

The Green Britain Centre is part of the Green Britain Foundation, whose aim is to promote an environment where we all live far more sustainably. The three big issues to tackle are Energy, Transport and Food. The Centre supports and undertakes initiatives to promote sustainability in each of these areas, as well as the protection and enhancement of wildlife areas and habitats.

About the role…

We are looking to recruit an experienced Catering Manager for our exclusively vegetarian/vegan café and conference facility in the inspiring Green Britain Centre in Norfolk.

You must have a passion for good food and service and able to demonstrate the skills, experience and knowledge necessary to create innovative and inspiring dishes from scratch.  You must be capable of sourcing the finest and freshest of local ingredients and work with our own growers to maximise the use of our home grown organic produce, reflecting the seasonality of food in your menus.

This is a challenging and demanding role but an excellent opportunity to build on the success of our café and conference catering facilities, with the scope and support to run operations as if it were your own business.

Key responsibilities:

• Running the kitchen and café, preparing a range of vegetarian and vegan meals, drinks and snacks to a high standard
• Conference catering for groups of up to 300
• Supervise, motivate and develop staff  and volunteers within the catering setting, ensuring the smooth running of all the facilities on a daily basis
• Provide and ensure excellent customer service at all times

• Plan menus, source goods ordering interesting and ethically responsible ingredients and set prices for dishes/snacks/drinks accordingly

• Manage resources and maintain a safe and hygienic environment in the kitchen and café to ensure that best practice, hygiene standards and record keeping are in line with local, national and company guidelines

• Develop and manage the Café to maximise its potential to provide a good and reliable source of income for the Green Britain Centre 

• Stock control, order and stock rotation and managing associated administration.

• Maintain a rota of staff and volunteers to ensure there are enough people in on any given day to cover duties

• Plan and undertake special dining events several times a year i.e. themed meals, pop ups etc. either ‘in house’ or with guest chefs

• Develop and run food production workshops i.e. jam, chutneys, bread making etc.

• Utilise surplus produce from our growing spaces to produce jams and chutneys etc. for sale in our shop

• Train volunteers with the skills necessary to support the role and to gain employment experience in this sector

• Work with the  Head of Centre to ensure volunteers are happy and productive in their roles

• Responsible for health and safety and ensuring that staff and volunteers work in a safe, healthy, and supportive environment

• Develop a seasonal angle to the menus and work towards reducing food miles

• Ensure the Café reflects the Green Britain Centres charitable objectives and vision 

• To be flexible in terms of working patterns for example, weekend and evening work.

Working relationships:

• Work effectively with the other members of the senior management team to deliver on the Centre’s annual business plan.

• Work effectively with the Visitor Centre Coordinator to develop a joined up approach to visitor experience.

• Effectively communicate with schools, volunteers, conference customers and other relevant contacts.

About you…

Knowledge:

• Experienced in creating Vegetarian and Vegan menus

• Food Hygiene and Safety qualification

• First Aid qualification

• Knowledge of Health & Safety regulations

  Skills:

• A love of good vegetarian and vegan food, with a passion for promoting a vegetarian lifestyle

• Ability to effectively create and manage budgets

• Demonstrable ability to coach, develop and line manage a small team of staff

• Ability to deliver exceptional customer service

• Ability to work as part of a senior management team to deliver on annual business plans

  Behaviours:

• Exceptional team player who builds open and supportive relationships

• Flexible and adaptable approach to work

• Creative and innovative

• Solutions focussed

• Engaging and motivating attitude and style

• Good attention to detail

• Calm under pressure

• Methodical and organised, managing own work and that of others

Green Britain Foundation is an equal opportunities employer and is committed to providing equality for all.