Production Chef

👨‍🍳 Production Chef - Central Kitchen, Big Volume, Bigger Rewards 👩‍🍳

📍 Location: Reading

📅 Start Date: ASAP

💼 Contract Type: Temporary to Permanent

⏱️ Hours: 36 hours per week

💰 Salary: £26,000 - £30,000 per annum

💸 Enhanced Pay: Time and a half for overtime, double pay on Sundays

Are you a skilled chef who thrives in a fast-paced, high-volume kitchen?

Want to be part of a central production team crafting hundreds of meals daily?

Blue Arrow is recruiting Production Chefs to join a large-scale catering operation in Reading - where your precision, speed, and passion will be rewarded.

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🍽️ About the Role:

Work from a central production kitchen preparing 600 meals a day, supplying a network of eateries, bars, and restaurants across the estate. You'll be part of a skilled brigade focused on quality, consistency, and sustainability.

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✨ What's in it for you?

* 🍽️ Free meals on duty

* 💸 Overtime paid at 1.5x hourly rate

* 📆 Double pay on Sundays

* 🎄 Christmas & Easter off - all kitchens close for the holidays

* 🌴 36 days annual leave

* 💷 Pension contribution - 5%, rising to 7% after 5 years

* 🧑‍🍳 Training & development - NVQs available

* 🏆 Chef competitions - showcase your skills

* 🏢 Variety of kitchens - across a large estate

* 🚗 On-site parking available

* 🌱 Fresh food focus - sustainability at the heart of every dish

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🧑‍🍳 What you'll be doing:

* 🔪 Producing large volumes of fresh meals to exacting standards

* 📋 Following HACCP and food safety procedures

* 🧾 Managing stock, ordering, and minimising waste

* 👥 Working closely with the Head Chef and wider team

* 🧠 Supporting menu development and operational efficiency

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🎓 What you'll need:

* 🎓 NVQ Level 2 in Professional Cookery (or equivalent)

* ✅ Level 2 Food Safety

* 🧠 Experience in a commercial or production kitchen

* 💬 Strong communication and organisational skills

* 💪 Calm under pressure, with a passion for food and teamwork

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Typical shifts include:

🕖 7am-2:30pm | 🕗 8am-2:45pm | 🕐 1pm-9pm | 🕝 2:15pm-10pm

Weekend work available - earn significantly more!

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Ready to feed the future? Apply now and power up your career with Blue Arrow!

Blue Arrow is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer and is committed to helping find great work opportunities for great people.