Front of House and Events Supervisor
- Job title: Front of House and Events Supervisor
- Job Type: Full time
- Salary: £28,137
- Department: Catering
- Reporting to: Head of Catering & Domestic Services
- Location: Entire school site
- Start: As soon as possible
- Closing Date: 16 March 2023 at 9:00 am
We have a great opportunity for a skilled front of house supervisor to join the friendly catering team at Highgate School.
The role involves the planning and the supervising of the catering for all internal events across the school site. This role is varied with events ranging from canape receptions, formal sit down meals and summer barbecues. It is expected that approximately 20% of time will be administration with 80% based customer facing.
With support from the Head of Catering and Domestic Services, you will have autonomy to implement new service standards to improve efficiency and raise the standard of catering service to our customers.
The role is predominantly Monday to Friday with occasional weekend work (approximately 8 Saturdays a year). Hours are flexible based on events and therefore there is no set working pattern.
The Department
Working in our nearly refurbished kitchen and Dining Hall featuring the latest Rational ICombi and IVario equipment, the catering team is responsible for providing catering throughout the school site. This includes preparing and serving over 2,000 lunches daily using fresh seasonal ingredients as well as catering for a wide range of functions.
It’s a dynamic department as no two days are the same, one day we could be preparing and serving teas for a cricket match, the next we could be preparing a canapes and drinks reception for 100 people.
The catering team of 40 staff are based across the school site and features roles as diverse as Tuck Shop Assistant, Chef de Partie, Pastry Chef and Front of House Supervisor.
By joining our team you will help deliver exceptional food and service, constantly looking to incorporate the latest food trends with a focus on sustainability and fresh ingredients.
Functions, Events and Private Dining
- Act as a host for out of hours functions, meeting and greeting guests, whether staff, parents, visitors etc.
- Supervising team of service staff at functions and events (this could include agency staff) ensuring staff costs are kept in line with budget and forecasted costs.
- Ensuring event catering throughout the school is delivered and set in a timely manner and to standard.
- Ensuring drinks are served at the correct temperature.
- Checking satisfaction with function organisers and attendees.
- Ensuring all catering is cleared away at the end of function / event and that the room is returned to its previous state.
- Supervising the washing up of plates, dishes and kitchen equipment.
- Ensure Packed lunch and lunchtime deliveries are all prepared and served in a timely manner, assisting the drivers as necessary
- Ensure all dispense kitchens are fully stocked and clean and tidy.
Dining Hall Lunch Service
- Ensuring the Dining Hall is set for lunch service.
- Liaising with Back of House Supervisor to ensure all areas of Dining Hall are staffed to appropriate levels with General Assistants.
- Ensuring tables are kept clean throughout lunch service and water jugs refilled.
- Ensuring cutlery and trays are restocked and are at adequate levels throughout lunch.
- Ensuring bread and condiment station is ready for lunch and it is replenished and remains clean and tidy throughout lunch.
Pre-preparatory Dining Hall
- Ensuring Dining Hall is set for lunch service.
- Ensuring the Dining Hall remains clean and tidy throughout lunch service.
- Ensuring all areas are clean and clear of personal effects.
General
- Offer a friendly and helpful service to all users of catering.
- Report any shortage of stock to the Head of Catering or Catering Manager.
- Under the supervision of the Head of Catering and Domestic Services maintain a hygienic and safe working environment, ensuring that food counters, refrigerators and display cabinets are kept clean and tidy.
- Report any equipment problems or chemical issues immediately to the Head of Catering and Domestic Services.
- Report to the Head of Catering and Domestic Services any cause for concern with regard to lighting, equipment, working area and general surroundings of the food preparation and service areas.
- Report any accidents or injuries.
- To be aware of, carry out and adhere to the School’s Health, Safety and food hygiene policies at all times.
- Carry out any duty as may be reasonably requested by the Head of Catering and Domestic Services.
- Whilst using school vehicles, ensure all road traffic regulations are adhered to.
- Criteria
- How will these be tested or verified?
- Qualifications
Essential
- Level 2 food hygiene
Desirable
- NVQ or similar in hospitality
- Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a similar, high volume environment such as a hotel or conference centre
Desirable
- Knowledge of child protection and safeguarding policies
- Knowledge of working in the education sector
- Ability / skills
Essential
- Capable of working on his/her own initiative
- Experience of supervising a team
- Have the ability to get on well with colleagues, staff and pupils
Desirable
- Possess a full driving licence
- Personal Attributes
Essential
- Self-motivated.
- Able to work on own initiative
- Able to cope well in high pressure moments.
- Flexible attitude to working hours
- Have an exemplary attendance record in respect of his/her present and previous employment.
- Highly presentable and approachable.
Benefits
Location | Highgate Village, adjacent to Hampstead Heath, with quaint shops and easy connections across London.
Pension | AVIVA workplace pension scheme offered with a generous 21% employer contribution.
Leisure facilities | Free access, at stipulated times, to our sports facilities, including a fitness suite and swimming pool (recently refurbished).
Holidays | Generous holiday allowance of 33 days (including bank holidays) for full-time staff. Most holidays will be taken during school holiday periods.
Lunch | A complimentary lunch.
Help with sustainable travel | Access to the Cycle to Work Scheme and a Season Ticket Loan scheme for public transport.
Family-friendly policies | Highgate appreciates that employees sometimes have family commitments so we try to be as supportive as possible, for example with enhanced maternity pay (8 weeks’ full pay, then 10 weeks’ half pay) and paid dependant leave.
Working at Highgate
A culture of community, kindness and belonging
Highgate is a caring, open-minded community, where we promote kindness, empathy and friendship. Everyone who works and studies with us deserves to feel they are part of a welcoming environment that enables them to be themselves and to thrive as individuals.
Our community extends beyond the school, through partnerships, charity work and our commitment to equality, inclusion and sustainability. All members of our school community are encouraged to look outwards and play an active role.
In a recent ISI inspection (Dec 2021), it was noted that “Pupils show exceptional respect for, and appreciate diversity within the school and wider community, and their own and other cultures, demonstrating sensitivity and tolerance to those from different backgrounds and traditions.”
Staff wellbeing
Highgate is committed to staff wellbeing, which we promote by encouraging a strong work-life balance; trying our best to support flexible working requests; providing a nutritious complimentary lunch in the dining hall; and offering access to sporting facilities including our recently renovated swimming pool.
The Staff Wellbeing Committee, with representatives across the School, meets regularly to drive forward initiatives, and a selection of staff have been trained as Mental-Health First Aiders.
We encourage an open culture throughout our school, with regular staff surveys, action committees and opportunities to feedback. We strive for continual learning and improvement, and staff training and development is paramount. There are opportunities to participate in the wider life of our school, such as taking part in trips or societies and getting involved in partnership projects.
More details about working at Highgate can be found here:
Charitable work and sustainability
As an independent school, we want to use our position as a charity effectively: to make high-quality education accessible to as many children as possible – through our bursary programme at Highgate and through our work with local state schools. We have partnerships with over 60 state schools across 7 London boroughs, and we are the principal educational sponsor for London Academy of Excellence, Tottenham – an academically-selective state sixth form in a community where such opportunities are lacking.
Alongside this, our staff and pupils undertake charitable activities throughout the year. These range from staff giving up their time to neighbourhood schools and charitable organisations, focused fundraising campaigns, to pupils undertaking community work in the local area or further afield.
As a school, we have a central role to play in educating our pupils, staff and parents about the importance of environmental sustainability. We are taking positive action to adapt our operational performance to tackle the negative effects of climate change. We encourage all our staff to reflect upon their personal and professional practices, to support our environmental agenda and to make positive changes wherever possible.
Application procedure
- Closing Date: 16th March 2023
- Timing of interviews: w/b 16 March 2023
Contact: Jamie Scott, Head of Catering & Domestic Services is happy to answer any questions about this post.
Early Application: Applications will be considered ‘as and when’ received and we may close the vacancy if we appoint before the closing date.
Apply hereInclusion
We know that more diverse teams are stronger teams, and that the more inclusive we are, the more our staff and pupils will feel a sense of belonging and will thrive. To enable us to make reasonable adjustments, please let us know of any disabilities (including neuro-divergence) when you submit your application.
Safeguarding
As this role will have regular unsupervised contact with children you must, if appointed, comply with Highgate’s Safeguarding Policy and Staff Code of Conduct. If in the course of carrying out the duties of the post the post holder becomes aware of any actual or potential risks to the safety and welfare of our pupils, these concerns must be reported immediately in accordance with the Safeguarding Policy. If whilst in the post, Highgate becomes aware of any safeguarding concerns to staff, pupils or the community; these will need to be followed up in line with the safeguarding policy and code of conduct which is underpinned by KCSE and other legislation. These concerns may need to be shared with other agencies. A copy of these policies will accompany all offers of employment. Training will also be provided to all staff to support Safeguarding practice.
Please read before you apply
Highgate is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of children and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to this post, including checks with past employers, the Disclosure and Barring Service and overseas police check if necessary. Candidates from overseas must provide information about their past conduct, for example, by providing documents issued by overseas teaching authorities.
Please note that this role is ‘exempt’ from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore, you are required to declare any convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings that are not ‘protected’ (i.e. filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013). Shortlisted candidates will be asked to provide details of all unspent convictions and those that would not be filtered, prior to the date of the interview.
In accordance with the latest guidance from KCSIE, we shall be conducting online searches on any candidates who are shortlisted.