Group Head of Catering - Band 8a
| Posting date: | 10 July 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £53,755.00 to £60,504.00 per year |
| Additional salary information: | £53755.00 - £60504.00 a year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 24 July 2025 |
| Location: | Lincoln, LN2 5QY |
| Company: | NHS Jobs |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | C9357-25-0568 |
Summary
Ensure the successful management and delivery of high-quality Catering services (retail and patient catering) across the Trust. Ensure the cleanliness and comfort of the Catering environments and ensure all patient associated activities are delivered ensuring safety and quality at all times. Management of all external catering contracts, monitoring of these as well as internal services ensuring high standards of service delivery for all services. Ensure the Trust is compliant and adhere with all Catering related aspects of CQC compliance essential standards catering and fabric. Lead and support Patient Led Assessment of the Care Environment (PLACE) to ensure continuous improvement in all aspects of the patient environment in relation to Catering Approve Catering services business continuity plans as part of the Trusts review process maximising the opportunities for business continuity support across the Trust Produce catering business cases to present to the Strategic Head of Facilities and Property Services to drive strategic and operational transformation. To develop relationships with clinical teams whilst upholding the role of the Catering service and building confidence in the food services provided within the Trust. To maintain and actively encourage links with external agencies such as Environmental Health to ensure compliance with current Food Safety Legislation. To communicate on all matters relating to Catering, ensuring clear verbal and/or written communication, utilising team briefings, departmental meetings and 1:1s to ensure understanding. Responsible for providing professional Catering advice and management support to external service users in line with service level agreements. To liaise with user departments and carry out routine service reviews to monitor customer satisfaction and participate in external service audits/assessments e.g., PLACE. Provide expert and specialist advice on the areas within your management control and respond to national and local directives, as appropriate. To maintain contact with consumers by undertaking regular ward visits and ensure that a register of compliments and complaints is maintained, and action taken and recorded to rectify any issues identified. To monitor the effectiveness of the patient food delivery service in conjunction with ward-based staff and highlight areas for improvement, taking corrective action as necessary. Regularly monitor external service contracts and review/re-tender as necessary. Monitor the market environment and adjust service procurement strategy to achieve maximum sustainable benefits. Develop and implement a continual review of services and contracts, preparing internal/external returns as required. Support the Trust as appropriate in complying with all NHSE and legislative guidance and requirements including EU directives, statutory body requirements, hazard and safety notices and advice relating to patient, public or staff safety, personal privacy and confidentiality. Develop the optimal level and location of Catering services to be provided in line with the Trusts overall strategy and comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act (and associated regulations) Food Safety Act (and subsequent regulations) CQC standards, Hospital Food Standards, PLACE and other relevant directives. To ensure that sensible policies of standardisation and rationalisation are followed throughout the Trust within the constraints that exist, e.g., menu and price setting and equipment utilisation. To challenge existing practices, ensuring that solutions taking into account best practice and changing healthcare. To ensure that all Catering services are flexible to meet the nutritional and dietary requirements of all patients and to liaise with dieticians and clinical colleagues to plan patient menus to ensure they achieve the required nutritional standards. To plan patient menus with a multi-disciplinary team to ensure compliance with CQUINN requirements regarding nutritional needs. To ensure processes are in place to deploy staff effectively and meet service demands. Ensure HACCP reviews are completed and available as required, in a well-structured and organised manner ensuring compliance with food safety legislation and that food hygiene ratings are maintained at the highest level. To maintain an equipment asset register and advise on replacement programme for food service needs. To communicate service change to staffing groups where there may be some resistance. Negotiating, influential and reasoning skills are required to deliver change to improve/modernise the department. To undertake/organise six monthly/annual performance reviews with all Catering staff, ensuring objectives are set and PDPs are in place and to encourage staff with their own personal development. To identify staff training needs and ensure on-the-job training and corrective coaching as appropriate and to evaluate the effectiveness of this training.