7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn
7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn

7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn

Wrexham Full-Time 26000 - 29000 ÂŁ / year (est.) No home office possible
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Ministry of Justice

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Join our catering team to prepare nutritious meals and support offenders in learning new skills.
  • Company: HMP Berwyn is a progressive prison focused on rehabilitation and skill development.
  • Benefits: Enjoy flexible working hours, a good salary, pension options, and apprenticeship opportunities.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact by helping others while developing your culinary skills in a unique environment.
  • Qualifications: Level 2 certificate in food production and food hygiene required; experience in an industrial kitchen preferred.
  • Other info: Part-time and job share options available; must be 18+ to apply.

The predicted salary is between 26000 - 29000 ÂŁ per year.

Full Time, Part Time, Part Time/Job Share, Flexible Working

Vacancy Approach

External

Location

Wrexham

Region

Closing Date

01-Aug-2025

Business Unit

Post Type

Permanent

AO

Number of jobs available

2

Reserve List

12 Months

Job ID

7453

Descriptions & requirements

This is not your average catering job. It is a great chance to put your catering qualifications and skills into practice and make an impact far beyond the kitchen.

As part of the prison’s catering team, you’ll be working in a professional industrial kitchen environment, with a good salary, pension and Civil Service benefits including apprenticeship opportunities ‘earn while you learn’. Unlike traditional restaurant jobs, you won’t have to work late into the evening.

You’ll oversee the work of offenders to prepare and cook quality, nutritional meals for the entire prison. Plus, you’ll play your part in helping them turn their lives around – supporting them to learn new skills and work towards gaining qualifications to increase their chances of employment and reduce their likelihood of reoffending when they leave prison.

Hours and salary

You will work a 37-hour week and shift patterns are in place which include hours outside of 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday, weekends and public holidays. You will receive a 20% unsocial hours payment in addition to your basic pay, subject to working these hours.

All roles can be open to part-time and job share arrangements subject to the business need/operational requirement. However, you will still be required to undertake the full range of shifts. As a new recruit, you will start on the minimum salary.

Band 3 salary minimum inclusive of 20% unsocial hours allowance – £32,448

Band 3 salary maximum inclusive of 20% unsocial hours allowance – £34,166

Qualifications and experience

  • Level 2 certificate in food production within hospitality and catering or equivalent
  • Food hygiene certificate at Level 2

In addition, you must be:

  • Familiar with all current health, safety and hygiene related regulations for working in a kitchen
  • Able to demonstrate competency within an industrial kitchen environment
  • Able to speak with confidence in English

Please note refresher training in food safety (HACCP) should be completed at three year intervals.

Tips for applying

You will need to provide an anonymised CV and answer questions which outline your past experience.

You will also need to answer specific ‘behavioural’ questions. We will ask you how you would react in your job.

Behaviours:

  • Developing self and others
  • Managing a quality service
  • Communicating and influencing
  • Working together

Additional Information

Successful applicants need to be 18 at the point they take up post as an exception under Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010.

Working Arrangements & Further Information

The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working.Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone’s circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review.

For nationally advertised roles, the successful candidate(s) will be appointed to aMoJoffice location, which may include their nearest Justice Collaboration Centre or Justice Satellite Office. This will be discussed and agreed on the completion of pre-employment checks.

Some of MoJ’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on \’modernised\’ terms in their current post or onto \’unmodernised\’ MoJ terms if they are on \’unmodernised\’ terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.

Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week excluding breaks which are unpaid. HMPPS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance withthe HMPPS’ Flexible Working policy.

If you are a current NPS employee, this vacancy may be available on a Loan basis for up to 2 years. Applications are invited from suitable qualified staff.

The Loan/Secondment is subject to the approval of the selected candidate\’s Business Unit, which should be obtained before confirmation of appointment.

-The holiday year runs from 1 March. If you work a non standard work pattern your leave entitlement may be expressed in either hours or days as appropriate. Leave entitlement is calculated on a pro-rata basis and you will be advised of your actual entitlement on appointment. If you were appointed internally and your leave was previously calculated in days, this will continue to be the case.

Bank, Public and Privilege Holidays

-You are entitled to 9 days (66 hours 36 minutes) in recognition of bank, public and privilege holidays. These hours are added to your annual leave allowance. There is a requirement to work some public and bank holidays subject to your shift pattern and the operational needs of the establishment

Pension

-The Civil Service offers a choice of two pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.

Work Life Balance

HM Prison & Probation Service(HMPPS) is keen to encourage alternative working arrangements. Work life balance provides greater opportunities for staff to work more flexibly wherever managers and establishments can accommodate requests to do so. HMPPS offers flexible working subject to completion of a satisfactory probationary period and NVQ

Season Ticket Advance

-After two months’ service, you’ll be eligible to apply for a season ticket advance to purchase a quarterly or longer-period season ticket for travel between home and your place of work

For any moves across the Civil Service may have implications on your ability to carry on claiming childcare vouchers

Training

HMPPS is committed to staff development and offers a range of training and development opportunities, including areas such as Equality and Diversity, Dealing with Challenging Behaviour, Suicide Prevention and Anti Bullying Programmes

-There are opportunities to access promotion programmes and HMPPS provides a variety of training appropriate to individual posts

-All staff receive security and diversity training and an individual induction programme into their new roles

-All candidates are subject to security and identity checks prior to taking up post

-All external candidates are subject to 6 months probation. Internal candidates are subject to probation if they have not already served a probationary period within HMPPS

-All staff are required to declare whether they are a member of a group or organisation which the HMPPS considers to be racist

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission\’s recruitment principles .Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order

  • To the Civil Service Commission (details available here )

As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.

You will be able to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process within the application form. If you need additional help completing the application form, please contact the TBS Recruitment Enquiries Team.

For more information on applying for a role as a candidate with a disability or long-term condition, please watch our animated videos .

The \”Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans\” initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces.
For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans

Redeployment Interview Scheme

Civil Service departments are expected to explore redeployment opportunities before making an individual redundant. The MoJ is committed, as part of the Redeployment Interview Scheme, to providing opportunities to those who are \’at risk of redundancy\’.

MoJ is able to offer an interview to eligible candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns. Candidates will not be eligible for the Redeployment Interview Scheme if they are applying on promotion.

Civil Service Nationality Rules

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

  • UK nationals
  • nationals of the Republic of Ireland
  • nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
  • individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
  • Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Band-3-SD-Catering-JD-216-1.pdf(Job Description Supporting Documents)

CYM Band-3_SD_Catering_JD216_v6.0.pdf(Welsh translated job description)

2024 09 25 Band 3 national inc unsocial hours allowance v1.0.docx(Job Description Attachment)

250

Working Together

Experience

We will assess your experience for this role via the following methods

CV or Work History

Evidence of Experience

CV or Work History

Technical

Technical Questions Application Form Question Word Limit

250

Work experience 1.

work experience 2.

Essential qualifications:
• Level 2 certificate in Food Production within Hospitality and Catering or equivalent

• Food Hygiene Certificate Level 2

•Vocational Qualification at Level 3 or be willing to work towards gaining this qualification within an agreed timescale.
*Please upload all qualifications on one file.*

Interview stage assessments

Interview Dates

Interviews are expected to commence August.

Behaviours

Communicating and Influencing

Managing a Quality Service

Working Together

Making Effective Decisions

Developing Self and Others

Strengths

Strengths will be assessed but these are not shared in advance. To learn more about Strengths and how they are assessed please click here .

Technical

Work experience 1.

work experience 2.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (Al)

You must ensure that any evidence submitted as part of your application, including your CV, statement of suitability and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note that plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.

#J-18808-Ljbffr

7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn employer: Ministry of Justice

At HMP Berwyn, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that values the growth and development of our staff. With a supportive work culture, flexible working arrangements, and comprehensive benefits including a competitive salary and pension, we empower our catering team to make a meaningful impact while helping offenders learn valuable skills. Join us in a role that not only offers professional fulfilment but also contributes to the rehabilitation of individuals, all within a dynamic and rewarding environment in Wrexham.
Ministry of Justice

Contact Detail:

Ministry of Justice Recruiting Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫

We think this is how you could land 7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn

✨Tip Number 1

Familiarise yourself with the specific requirements of working in a prison environment. Understanding the unique challenges and responsibilities of catering in such a setting will help you stand out during interviews.

✨Tip Number 2

Highlight any experience you have in training or mentoring others, as this role involves overseeing offenders. Demonstrating your ability to support and develop others can be a key selling point.

✨Tip Number 3

Prepare for behavioural questions by reflecting on past experiences where you've managed quality service or communicated effectively under pressure. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your responses.

✨Tip Number 4

Research the Ministry of Justice's values and how they relate to the role. Being able to articulate how your personal values align with theirs can demonstrate your commitment to the position and the organisation.

We think you need these skills to ace 7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn

Catering Qualifications
Food Hygiene Knowledge
Health and Safety Regulations
Industrial Kitchen Experience
Team Management Skills
Communication Skills
Ability to Train and Mentor Others
Time Management
Adaptability to Shift Patterns
Understanding of Nutritional Standards
Problem-Solving Skills
Ability to Work Under Pressure
Interpersonal Skills
Commitment to Continuous Learning

Some tips for your application 🫡

Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV highlights relevant experience in catering and any qualifications you have, such as the Level 2 certificate in food production. Emphasise your ability to work in an industrial kitchen and your knowledge of health and safety regulations.

Answer Behavioural Questions Thoughtfully: Prepare for the behavioural questions by reflecting on past experiences where you've demonstrated skills like managing a quality service or working collaboratively. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answers.

Showcase Your Passion for Development: In your application, express your enthusiasm for helping others develop their skills. Mention any previous experience you have in training or mentoring, as this aligns with the role's focus on supporting offenders.

Proofread Your Application: Before submitting, carefully proofread your application for any spelling or grammatical errors. A polished application reflects your attention to detail, which is crucial in a catering environment.

How to prepare for a job interview at Ministry of Justice

✨Understand the Role

Make sure you thoroughly read the job description and understand the unique aspects of working in a prison catering environment. Be prepared to discuss how your skills and qualifications align with the responsibilities of overseeing offenders in meal preparation.

✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions

Since the interview will include behavioural questions, think of specific examples from your past experiences that demonstrate your ability to manage a quality service, communicate effectively, and work collaboratively. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answers.

✨Show Your Commitment to Safety and Hygiene

Given the importance of health and safety regulations in a kitchen, be ready to discuss your knowledge of food hygiene practices and any relevant certifications. Highlight your commitment to maintaining a safe and clean working environment.

✨Express Your Passion for Development

This role involves helping offenders develop new skills. Share your enthusiasm for teaching and mentoring others, and provide examples of how you've supported individuals in their personal or professional growth in previous roles.

7453 - Prison Catering: Caterer - HMP Berwyn
Ministry of Justice
Location: Wrexham
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