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Skills and qualifications you need

We want people who are passionate about making good quality food and enjoy the challenge of working in a unique environment.

You’ll be catering for hundreds of people every day so you need to be organised and know how to work efficiently.

Prison kitchens can be a pressured environment so you need to be able to remain calm and think on your feet.

You need to be:

  • skilled in catering and preparing food for large numbers of people
  • a good team player
  • a confident communicator
  • positive and encouraging
  • flexible and creative in your approach

You’ll also need a good working knowledge of food legislation.

Qualifications

You will need to be familiar with all current food, health, safety and hygiene-related regulations for working in a kitchen.

Once in post, you’ll need to complete food safety hygiene training every 3 years.

Prison caterer (band 3)

To be a prison caterer you’ll need:

  • a vocational qualification at level 3 or be willing to work towards one
  • a level 2 certificate in food production within hospitality and catering or equivalent
  • a food hygiene certificate at level 2

Catering supervisor (band 4)

To be a catering supervisor you’ll need:

  • a level 2 certificate in food production within hospitality and catering or equivalent
  • higher qualifications or be working towards them
  • a food hygiene certificate at level 3 (intermediate level)

Someone like you?

Before you apply, why not get more of a feel for if the role is a good match for your personal strengths and skills?