Job overview
We are recruiting for a Catering Assistant who shares our vision to be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service to our patients
Our busy catering department is looking for an enthusiastic and adaptable catering assistant to join the catering teams at East and North Herts Teaching NHS Trust.
The catering team delivers a high-quality catering and retail service to patients, staff and visitors.
The role of catering assistants involves providing a range of support to our catering team which includes picking patient food orders, food deliveries, retail services, cleaning services, front servery & operating till systems.
You should be able to work at part of a team and communicate well with colleagues, staff and visitors. You will need to work within hospital policies and procedures and always uphold the values of East and North Herts Teaching NHS Trust.
At the heart of everything we do are our core values; Include, Respect, and Improve. We encourage you to embrace these values throughout the recruitment process and in your role with us.
Main duties of the job
You will work as part of a busy team and will be designated to one particular section but would be expected to work in all areas of the Catering Department if required to do so.
You will be required to undertake a wide range of general Catering duties including preparation of food, service of food to patients, staff and the public, cleaning of and use of equipment and machinery, and the operation of mechanical industrial type dishwashing machines.
You will also be required to maintain stocks in the site’s vending machines and to handle cash.
Working for our organisation
At East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust, we are proud of the range of general and specialist services we provide and our 6,000 or so dedicated staff ensure our patients get the best care. Our ability to be flexible and innovative in the way in which we work and deliver our services to our catchment has never been more important than it is now.
We run the following hospitals:
* The Lister Hospital, Stevenage
* New Queen Elizabeth II (New QEII), Welwyn Garden City
* Hertford County, Hertford
* Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC), Northwood
We have ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust where dedicated staff provide high-quality, compassionate care to our patients. We continue to undergo significant transformation and our staff and patients are at the heart of delivering this ambitious agenda.
We are committed to a positive work life balance for our employees. This means that any employee is entitled to seek to work flexible working patterns and we are committed to listen and consider all requests. Such requests, of course, have to be made and considered formally, and will need to be balanced against service needs, but our starting point will always be to find ways to support making them happen.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification applicant pack for further detailed information regarding this role.
Person specification
Qualifications / Training
Essential criteria
* A good standard of general education - no formal qualifications required
* Willingness to undertake all training required
* Basic Level 2 Food Hygiene Certificate
Desirable criteria
* First Aid Certificate
* Basic Catering training
* Allergen Awareness training
Previous Experience
Essential criteria
* Previous Catering experience preferred but not essential as training will be provided
* Experience of cleaning techniques
Desirable criteria
* Previous cashier and cash/card handling experience
* Previous experience of working in a customer facing environment
* Previous experience of using industrial Catering equipment
Skills
Essential criteria
* Excellent Written and verbal communication skills
* Good personal organisational skills - ability to prioritise tasks
* Ability to work on own initiative or as part of a team
Desirable criteria
* Basic food preparation skills
Knowledge
Desirable criteria
* To have some knowledge of different varieties of food and beverages