Assistant Chef

Assistant Chef

Job Summary

St Teresa’s Hospice, Darlington, is seeking an Assistant Chef to join our hospice Catering & Establishment Team, the postholder will play a vital role in providing nutritious, freshly prepared meals for patients, visitors and staff. The Assistant Chef will work as an integrated member of the hospice Catering & Establishment Team to provide high quality meals to guests, visitors and staff. Aspects of this work will include the preparation of meals from fresh ingredients, the management of stock, and working to a cleaning checklist.

Location: St Teresa’s Hospice, The Woodlands, Woodland Road, Darlington, DL3 7UA

Hours: We are seeking a candidate to work 13 hours per week; usual working pattern Tuesday and Thursday 10am to 2pm and Friday 9am to 2pm.

You will need to work flexibly outside of normal working hours on occasion, as required, to cover staff leave.

St Teresa’s Hospice Band 3: £25, 011.00 per annum, pro rata. £10, 004.40 actual for 13 hours per week.

Important application info:

Successful applicants are required to provide a basic disclosure. Disclosure expense will be met by St Teresa’s Hospice. All posts are subject to a six-month probationary period.

The closing date for this job is: 28 June 2026 or as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Please apply as soon as possible to be considered for this role.

Please be aware that we do not have a sponsor license, and are therefore only able to appoint candidates who are eligible to work in the UK.

Main duties of the job:

To prepare and serve homemade nutritious meals to patients, families, staff and visitors.

To ensure kitchen is compliant with food safety legislation.

To work with other Kitchen Team members to assist in the development and preparation of special occasion menus.

Essential and desirable qualifications, skills and experience include:

Basic/Level 1 Food Hygiene Certificate

Knowledge of Health & Safety standards in a kitchen environment

Professional experience in a busy environment, preparing and cooking meals from fresh ingredients; preferably in a catering environment

Understanding the demands of Hospice care

For further details, please see the job description and person specification which is available from our website at https://darlingtonhospice.org.uk/work-with-us/

About Us:

Join an organisation where we all work together for a shared charitable goal, based in beautiful grounds, with a community feel and an inclusive culture.

Benefits of working for St T's include:

Training and development opportunities

Flexible working schemes

Generous company annual leave, sick pay, and maternity/paternity/adoption pay entitlements

Continuation of existing NHS pension scheme at Band 5+, and other pension schemes available

Opportunities to attend and participate in fun and exciting fundraising and awareness events

Workforce events, including long service awards

Employee Assistance Programme including free counselling/CBT

Discounted complementary therapies including acupuncture & massage

Onsite Bistro

Free eye tests for computer users

Hospice-based staff are eligible for free annual flu jabs

Free will-writing service via Octopus Legacy

Discounted local leisure centre membership and eligibility for Blue Light discount card

Please contact HR for further details.

St Teresa’s Hospice complies with GDPR during the recruitment and selection process. For information on how we process your data, please see the NHS Jobs Privacy Notice and St Teresa’s Hospice Recruitment Privacy Notice.

St Teresa’s Hospice is a Disability Confident Employer. We are committed to employing and retaining disabled people, and we encourage applications from all sectors of the community.

To apply:

You can download the application form at: https://darlingtonhospice.org.uk/work-with-us/

Please submit your completed application form via post or by hand to HR Dept, St Teresa’s Hospice, The Woodlands, Woodland Road, Darlington, DL3 7UA, or by email to hr@darlingtonhospice.org.uk

For more information about the role, please contact the HR Office on 01325 254321.

Our Values:

Our values are our core beliefs. They explain who we are, what we believe in and what we stand for.

A welcoming space

Dedicated to care

Compassion in all we do

Support at every stage

Excellence in everything