Executive Head Chef

Job Title: Executive Chef
Location: St Andrew’s Prep, Eastbourne, East Sussex
Contract: Full-time, five days over seven
Salary: Up to £55,000 per annum

We are delighted to be recruiting an Executive Chef to lead and inspire the food and hospitality services at St Andrew’s Prep, a respected co-educational independent prep school located in Eastbourne, East Sussex.

This is a fantastic opportunity for a dynamic and food-focused chef who thrives in a quality-driven environment. The role is based on a five-over-seven working pattern, providing a balanced and sustainable work-life rhythm, ideal for someone who understands school life and values consistency in delivery.

We’re looking for a creative, hands-on leader who can combine operational excellence with culinary flair.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead, motivate, and develop the catering team to deliver exceptional food and service

• Design and implement seasonal, nutritious menus that appeal to pupils, staff, and guests

• Oversee daily kitchen operations, ensuring compliance with food hygiene and health & safety standards

• Bring innovation and modern food trends to the forefront of school dining

• Support hospitality and events catering with flair and attention to detail

• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, collaboration, and high performance

About You:

• Proven experience as a Head or Executive Chef in a high-volume, quality-led environment

• Passionate about fresh, seasonal ingredients and creating exciting food experiences

• Excellent leadership, team development, and communication skills

• A strong understanding of compliance, stock control, allergen management, and sustainability

• A natural collaborator who enjoys being hands-on and visible within the kitchen and wider school

If you’re ready to lead a talented team and elevate the catering offer at one of Sussex’s leading prep schools, we’d love to hear from you.

Let me know if you'd like the Holroyd Howe company profile and safeguarding statement added at the bottom.

Key Responsibilities:

• Drive culinary innovation and ensure all dishes are crafted with taste and quality in mind.
• Oversee day-to-day kitchen operations, including menu planning, stock management, and supplier relationships.
• Lead and inspire a large team, ensuring collaboration and excellence across all kitchens.
• Deliver exceptional hospitality services, with a focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients.
• Manage events and ensure seamless execution of catering for various functions.

• Proven experience as a Head Chef, ideally in a school or multi-site environment
• Strong leadership skills, with the ability to manage and motivate a diverse team
• Expertise in fresh, seasonal, and innovative food preparation
• Strong knowledge of stock control, ordering, and kitchen management systems
• Passionate about delivering exceptional hospitality experiences

Holroyd Howe is one of the UK’s leading contract caterers, providing fresh innovative food services solely to independent schools and colleges. We are a team of experienced professionals who tailor our catering service provision specifically to suit children of all ages in order to meet the bespoke requirements of each school.

To provide our teams with the right skills to succeed in their jobs, we invest in their training and development. Our exceptional teams of seasoned specialists customise our catering services to fit children of all ages and satisfy the unique needs of our clients.

We pride ourselves on:

Sustainability

Sustainability is at the heart of our thinking; always mindful of the ethics of our sourcing and how we prepare our meals.

Nutrition

We take nutrition seriously and understand the impact a healthy diet has on the fundamental years of development. Meals are always freshly prepared from scratch and packed with nutritious ingredients.

Food Innovation

We offer a wide portfolio of training opportunities and experiences, which attracts chefs who are passionate about culinary excellence and menu innovation to our team.

From tasting tables, theme days and food theatre, to chef demonstrations and supplier showcases, we create engaging and fun dining experiences for our students. We work together to make mealtimes exploratory, quirky, and fun for our pupils, helping them build strong and healthy relationships with food.

“Holroyd Howe is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expect all employees to share this commitment. All roles within Holroyd Howe are regarded as regulated activity, it is an offence to apply for a role in regulated activity if you are barred from working with children, therefore we will require an Enhanced DBS which includes a Barred List check for all successful applicants. We will also require shortlisted applicants to provide appropriate information regarding any criminal offences and shortlisted applicants will be subject to an online search of public available information on suitability to work with children.“

This appointment is offered on the return of satisfactory professional references.

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