Catering Manager - Barbara Priestman Academy
Job Summary
Working Pattern:
Full time - term time plus specified days
Advert Start Date:
22/07/2026
Advert End Date:
Closed for applications on 02/09/2026 09:00
Salary:
£24,349 – £25,978 actual salary (pay award pending)
Job Category:
Catering / Cleaning
Employment Location:
Barbara Priestman Academy, Sunderland SR6
Further Information
Together we build brighter futures for our young people with special educational needs. Founded in 2012, The Ascent Academies’ Trust is a family of six special academies in the North of England, over four different local authorities. We are a collaborative group of academies who work closely with one another in order to achieve the best outcomes for our young people. As a result, our academies have improved year on year and all academies are currently at least Good from an Ofsted rating, with some individual areas rated outstanding. This is an exciting time to join our Trust as we look to set out our next steps in creating brilliant schools. We are an ethical Trust whose vision and values are aligned to equality and diversity, collaboration and lifelong learning.
We are looking to appoint a Catering Manager to work in our Sixth Form Cafe. You will be working alongside teaching and learning colleagues who lead on the curriculum needs and support of young people who are undertaking qualifications as part of their study programme in Sixth Form.
The Sixth Form is a thriving learning base for around 60 learners. Our focus is to prepare our young people for adulthood through vocational learning and practical experiences. We are looking for someone who is both committed to the role and able to support our young people to learn and develop their skills in a real-life kitchen environment.
You will be passionate about ensuring young people have access to healthy and nutritious food which meets their dietary and sensory needs. You will be hardworking, flexible and enjoy working in a fast-paced environment.
Candidates will possess GCSE A* - C or equivalent in Maths and English or be willing to undertake a skills test as part of the interview process. You will also have experience of working in a catering management position or a supervisory role within a kitchen and the preparation of fresh, home-cooked food.
What we need:
- An individual with a passion for working in the catering service of a multi-academy trust
- An enthusiastic and positive approach
- Commitment to own professional development including the completion of an external qualification during the course of the traineeship
- Consistently high expectations and aspirations for our young people and yourself
- Someone with strong attention to detail, thoroughness and a high level of integrity
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
- Complete commitment to the core values of Ascent
We can offer you:
- An exciting opportunity to develop within this role
- Comprehensive induction programme
- Opportunity to work in settings which value multi-disciplinary ways of working
- An opportunity to work with highly-skilled professionals who love what they do
- A comprehensive wellbeing and support package for staff
This is an exceptional opportunity to make a difference within a positive and exciting environment. If you share our community’s ethos of diversity and collaboration, then we would be delighted to hear from you.
For an informal discussion about this post please contact Natalie Preece, Assistant Head of Academy by email: npreece@ascenttrust.org.
To apply for this post please click on 'Apply Now' and login to/ create your NEJobs account.
The Job Description and Person Specification for this post can be viewed in the Supporting Documents section of this advert.
Closing Date: Wednesday 2nd September 2026 at 9.00am
Interview Date: Tuesday 22nd September 2026
Please note - if you are appointed, you will be subject to an online search. You will then have the opportunity to address any issues of concern that come up during the search.
The Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people with Special Needs and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore will be subject to a DBS check from the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Please note
This job is closed for applications.