About Us
Aberdeen Cyrenians have provided front-line services and care in the North East for over 50+ years, empowering vulnerable and socially excluded people, to overcome their personal challenges, make informed choices, and move towards positive outcomes, promoting dignity, inclusiveness, and equality throughout communities.
Our organisation exists to support anyone and everyone who is facing difficulty and we provide a wide range of life-changing services including support to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, have experienced abuse, are at risk of violence, are at high financial risk, struggling with mental health issues, struggling with substance addiction, social exclusion or involved in the justice system.
You can find out more about our organisation and our impact at
About Wernham House
Wernham House is a residential and respite care accommodation service for adults who have alcohol and substance use problems and mental health issues. It provides care, support, and accommodation for 17 individuals, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with a dedicated team of Support Practitioners.
Job Title: Cook
Responsible to: Team Leader
Location: Wernham House
Hours of Work: 39 hours per week (Monday-Friday)
Spinal point: 28
Salary: £27,297.00
Required qualifications: Recognised professional cookery qualification (eg. SVQ or City & Guilds 2 in Professional Cookery) or demonstrable experience in a similar setting
Main Responsibilities: Responsible for delivering high‑quality, nutritious meals that meet the dietary, cultural, health and personal preferences of residents living within a busy residential facility. The role involves planning menus, preparing meals, managing food orders and stock, and maintaining a safe, well‑organised kitchen environment that complies with food safety legislation, hygiene standards, and organisational policies. The post operates with a high degree of autonomy and plays a key role in enhancing residents’ wellbeing and mealtime experience.
JOB ACTIVITIES
* Prepare and cook nutritious, balanced, appetising meals for residents in accordance with planned menus and residents’ dietary needs and preferences.
* Ensure meals are cooked to a consistently high standard, meeting quality, portion size and presentation expectations.
* Develop weekly menus, incorporating resident feedback and taking into account variety, nutritional needs and availability of ingredients.
* Order food and supplies, check deliveries for accuracy and quality, and store items safely in the larder, fridge or freezer in line with food‑safety requirements.
* Monitor inventory, rotate stock appropriately and maintain records of supplies, ensuring freshness and minimising waste.
* Prepare and cook appropriate quantities of food in advance for weekend service, ensuring meals are safely stored and labelled for later use.
* Maintain high standards of food hygiene, food safety and health & safety regulations at all times in line with HACCP principles.
* Maintain a clean, organised, and safe kitchen environment, ensuring compliance with environmental health requirements.
* Maintain accurate records relating to food preparation, stock levels, temperature checks, and cleaning schedules.
* Ensure safe operation of kitchen equipment and report any equipment faults or safety concerns to the Team Leader promptly.
* Engage positively with residents to support a respectful, person-centred mealtime experience.
* Participate in mandatory training and maintain up‑to‑date knowledge of food safety, allergens, hygiene and health and safety requirements.
Essential Role Requirements
* Food Hygiene qualification at level 2 or equivalent and strong understanding of safe food handling practices
* Recognised professional cookery qualification (eg. SVQ or City & Guilds 2 in Professional Cookery) or demonstrable experience in a similar setting
* Good organisational, communication and time management skills
Systems
* Cezanne Self-service
* Office 365
Aims, values and behaviours
* To be respectful of and work in accordance with the core values and behaviours of the organisation.
* To respect and work in accordance with our Equality and Diversity Policy and ensure its promotion in the course of your daily work
* Have a duty to take care of your own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by your actions at work.
* Co-operate with employers and co-workers to help everyone meet their legal requirements.
* Raise any specific queries or concerns you have regarding your workplace with your line manager or health and safety representative.
You can expect the following working for us:
* Comprehensive training through our online Learning Management System
* Opportunity to pursue on-the-job qualifications and career progression
* We are a Living Wage Foundation accredited employer - pay is reviewed annually each April
* Benefits including Bike to Work Scheme and an Employee Assistance programme
* A warm and friendly team environment where everyone is valued.
* Mileage paid at the national rate.
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It's important to us that we recruit people who share our values and who want to make a difference. Our interview process is designed to get to know you better and to find out why you want to work for us. If you are nervous, please don't be - there are no right or wrong answers.
Because we work with vulnerable people, we have a responsibility to safeguard them. We undertake background and reference checks, and it is a term of employment with us that all employees in regulated roles are required to be members of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme, administered by Disclosure Scotland.
We guarantee an interview to candidates who have lived experience within the areas of society and the issues that we support and those who are care-experienced, subject to meeting the minimum criteria for the role.
We're an equal opportunities employer and value diversity - exclusion has no place in our workplaces. If you need us to make reasonable adjustments to allow you to attend an interview with us, just let us know .
We regret that, due to current Home Office rules, we are not able to sponsor applicants for this role, so you must be eligible to live and work in the UK without sponsorship.
The closing date for this position is 5 pm on Wednesday 29th of April 2026.
We review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the advert early should sufficient applications be received.