Catering Area Manager

Employer: St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi Academy Trust

Location: St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi Academy Trust

Hours: 37 hours per week 

Position:  Permanent / 41 weeks per year 

Salary: £32,971 -  £36,144

Grade: Band 6 (Points 25 - 29)

Start Date: 24th August 2026 

Closing date: 09:00 am 5th May 2026

Interview Date:  To Be confirmed

For many pupils, a school meal is the most important meal of the day. This is an opportunity to play a key operational role in a high-profile service that directly impacts the health, wellbeing and daily experience of thousands of pupils, staff and visitors.

Working closely with the Trust Catering Manager, you will help ensure a consistent, high-quality catering service across multiple schools, supporting teams to deliver excellent food, strong standards and continuous improvement.

The Role:

Reporting to the Trust Catering Manager, you will provide hands-on operational leadership across a group of schools, ensuring catering services are safe, compliant, efficient and focused on delivering nutritious, appealing food for pupils.

Key Responsibilities:

• Supporting the day-to-day delivery of catering services across multiple schools
• Ensuring kitchens are effectively staffed, organised and operating efficiently
• Providing practical support, including covering absences and assisting with food preparation where required
• Line managing and developing Catering Supervisors and teams
• Ensuring compliance with food safety, health & safety and environmental health requirements
• Monitoring service standards, performance and customer experience across all sites
• Supporting the delivery of Trust KPIs and continuous service improvement
• Managing staff rotas, training, induction and ongoing development
• Acting as a key link between school sites and the Trust Catering Manager

You will be:

• Passionate about delivering high-quality, nutritious food for children and young people
• A proactive and hands-on team leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment
• Organised, adaptable and able to manage multiple priorities across different sites
• A strong communicator who can build positive relationships with staff and stakeholders
• Committed to high standards, compliance, and continuous improvement

You will be able to demonstrate:

• Experience working within a catering or hospitality environment
• Knowledge of food safety, hygiene and health & safety legislation
• Experience supporting or supervising teams
• Strong organisational and problem-solving skills
• Ability to analyse performance information and respond effectively
• Confidence working independently and making operational decisions

How to apply

To apply for this role please submit your application no later than the closing date stated above. You will receive an automated response from our vacancies inbox to confirm your application has been received. We warmly encourage applicants to visit our schools. Please contact the offices to arrange an appointment on 01162968161.

Why work for the St Thomas Aquinas Multi Academy Trust?

• Genuine opportunities for career progression - with 23 academies in our family, and 84 academies across the Diocese, opportunities for career progression are a reality.

• Pension - automatic enrolment into the  the Local Government Pension Scheme for support staff, one of the most competitive on the market, with employer contributions of above 20% in most cases.

• Terms and Conditions - we have committed to following nationally agreed terms and conditions for pay for both teachers and support staff.

About St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi Academy Trust

Our school is part of the St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi-Academy Trust which brings together the 23 Catholic Primary and Secondary schools in Leicester City, Rutland and Leicestershire.  Our priority is to ensure the very best Catholic Education for all young people in our community, whatever their circumstances. We will achieve this together, through a strategic approach to sharing best practice, effective challenge and support from a central standards and performance team and opportunities for high quality Continuing Professional Development.

The Trust and all our schools within our Trust committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and we expect all staff to share this commitment. An enhanced DBS check, online check and other pre-employment checks are required for successful applicants.  The Trust will endeavour to make any necessary reasonable adjustments to the job and the working environment to enable access to employment opportunities for disabled job applicants or continued employment for any employee who develops a disabling condition.

Our Trust strives to be a supportive, inclusive, caring and positive community where every staff member has a sense of belonging. We are committed to cultivating an equitable working environment where staff treat one another with dignity and respect and where every individual can fulfil their potential. We warmly welcome those of different cultures, ethnicities and beliefs. This includes those of all faiths, the Catholic faith and those without a faith who are supportive of the Trust’s Catholic character and Christian ethos. This diversity is fundamental to our values and enriches the lives of the students within our schools.

We are a Disability Confident Committed employer and welcome applications from people with a disability or long-term health condition.