Catering Assistant

Job summary

The Catering Team is looking for a Band 3 Catering assistant to support the catering over the Tatchbury site. We are looking for someone who is going to be committed to our services and also able to help the team develop the food service across the site.

The role does require you to take responsible for all the associated clerical and due diligence duties this role involves while on duty and have a good knowledge of working with food allergens and intolerances.

We will require you within your duties to help maintain certain records including the daily diligence documentation delivery checks, temperature control, allergen records, cleaning schedules etc.

The catering provision is mainly a fresh produced service, with the addition of some regen foods supplied from our CPU (central production unit).

The role also involves face to face contact with the patients and staff on a daily basis and the assistant in the service of the main meals.

All training will be provided by the site and its team.

The vacancy is for 37.5 hours per week; the post is for 5 days over 7 days including weekends as rostered.

You will be working alongside other staff on site but will be required to work alone for some of the time depending on the location you are working in.

It is very important that you are able to be flexible as our services are patient based and we do need to provide that service to them 365 days a year.

Main duties of the job

The post holder is responsible for assisting in the delivery of a catering service to clients of the Catering department whilst leading to an apprenticeship to gain a formal NVQ qualification as a chef.

The nature of this post means the post holder will be expected to work in one or more departments within the kitchen area to gain a knowledge of how the department runs and learn the art of catering it will involve some cooking duties, sandwich and veg preparation, and carrying out other kitchen duties including washing up, serving customers and assisting the chef on duty whilst learning.

To help ensure the services are run smoothly in accordance with Trust guidelines and policies to help maintain a catering service to clients and staff working a series of shifts based on a five over seven day contract.

About us

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides joined-up mental and physical healthcare for around two million people across our communities. With over 13,000 staff working in the community and local hospitals, we deliver care at every stage of life, helping people live their best and healthiest lives.

Our mental health services include community-based support and early intervention in psychosis (EIP) for both adults and young people, alongside a network of specialist inpatient wards covering forensic, learning disability, eating disorder and older person's care.

We deliver extensive physical health services too, from urgent community response teams helping frail and older patients remain safely at home, to hospitals at home teams providing acute-level care in familiar surroundings. Our neurological services offer rehabilitation and treatment for conditions including Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, Motor Neurone Disease, Head Injury, Cerebral Palsy and Stroke. Across Hampshire, our community hospitals provide inpatient rehabilitation as a step down from acute care, and our dedicated teams also staff Treetops Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Portsmouth, offering expert, compassionate support.

Everything we do is underpinned by our CARE values of compassion, accountability, respect and excellence

Details

• Date posted: 03 June 2026
• Pay scheme: Agenda for change
• Band: Band 3
• Salary: £25,760 to £27,476 a year Based on full time hours
• Contract: Permanent
• Working pattern: Full-time
• Reference number: 348-FME-11568
• Job locations: Tatchbury Mount, Calmore, Southampton, Hampshire, SO40 2RZ, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities

Further information about the Trust and this role can be found on the Job Description and Person Specification document attached. It is important to us that we ensure our recruitment processes are accessible and inclusive to everyone - if as a potential candidate you are concerned a person specification may prevent or restrict your application for employment as a result of unintentional barriers on the grounds of your sex, race, age, sexual orientation, religion/belief or disability please initially contact the Trust's Recruitment team - detailed in the advert. The Trust will seek to resolve this issue wherever possible.

We are happy to talk Flexible Working - all requests for flexible working options can be discussed as part of the interview process.