Catering Assistant

About The Role
Ark St Alban's Academy
Catering Assistant
Location: Highgate, Birmingham
Salary: Ark Support Salary Scale 1, £24,482 (£14,624, actual salary based on working 25 hours per week, term time only
Contract: Permanent
Working hours: Part time, Term time only. 0930 - 14:30 Monday to Friday
Start date: Flexible for the right candidate
Closing date: 14 December 2025
Interview date: 15 December 2025

Are you enthusiastic about food and enjoy working in a busy kitchen environment? This could be the perfect role for you!

About the role:

Ark St Alban's Academy is looking for a friendly and hardworking Catering Assistant to join our dedicated catering team. You'll play an important part in delivering a high-quality meal service for our students and staff, helping to create a positive dining experience every day.

As a Catering Assistant, you'll support with all aspects of food preparation, serving meals, maintaining kitchen hygiene, and ensuring smooth day-to-day operations in the kitchen.

What We're Looking For:

• Team Player: Able to work well with others in a fast-paced environment.
• Reliable & Positive: A can-do attitude and willingness to learn.
• Safety Conscious: Basic understanding of food hygiene and safety standards (training provided if needed).
• Organized & Efficient: Able to follow instructions and complete tasks promptly.
• Customer Focused: Friendly and approachable when serving students and staff.

If you enjoy working with food and want to make a difference in a school community, we'd love to hear from you!

Benefits

• Salaries 2.5% higher than main pay scale.
• Generous pension scheme.
• Access to Ark rewards - a scheme offering savings from over 3,000 major retailers
• Interest-free loans - up to £5,000 available for season ticket or to buy a bicycle.
• Gym discounts - offering up to 40%.
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme - providing free, confidential counselling, legal advice and a range of different support.

Find out more about the benefits of working for Ark at arkonline.org/careers/why-work-with-us/

About Us

We are committed to addressing educational disadvantage. We consistently guide pupils to GCSE and A-Level outcomes which place our cohorts in the top 10% of schools nationally on many measures, including those for the progress of disadvantaged pupils. Our school serves pupils from central Birmingham. The percentage of our cohort eligible for the Pupil Premium is the eighth highest in the country.

There are very few communities in the UK who need great teachers more than ours. Teachers and leaders at Ark St Alban's Academy are determined to prove that the background of a young person can be no impediment to their success. Our school prepares pupils to succeed at elite universities, with our alumni proudly representing our community at prestigious destinations including Cambridge University, Durham University and the London School of Economics.

Visit arkstalbans.org/jobs to learn more about us.

Diversity and inclusion:

We aim to build a diverse and inclusive organisation where everyone - staff and students - can do their best work and achieve their full potential. We want to reflect and represent diverse perspectives across our organisation because we know that doing so will make us stronger and more effective. To know more about Ark's diversity and inclusion commitments, please click on this link.

Safeguarding statement:

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.

Ark requires all employees to undertake an enhanced DBS check. You are required, before appointment, to disclose any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Non-disclosure may lead to termination of employment. However, disclosure of a criminal background will not necessarily debar you from employment - this will depend upon the nature of the offence(s) and when they occurred. To read more about Ark's safer recruitment process, please click this link.

Please note we will be reviewing applications on an on-going basis and this role may close earlier than advertised depending on the level of response. We strongly encourage to submit your application at your earliest convenience.