Baker
Make bread, cakes and pastries for shops and supermarkets or sell your hand-made loaves in a small bakery or delicatessen.
Also known as: patissier, konditor
About the job
Salary
Source: National Careers Service
Weekly
£365
Entry level
£500
Experienced
Monthly
£1,583
Entry level
£2,167
Experienced
Yearly
£19,000
Entry level
£26,000
Experienced
4,200
people are currently employed
Low growth
100 more jobs in 5 years
These figures refer to this job and similar ones with comparable skills and qualifications. They only apply to Scotland. Source: Oxford Economics
What it's like
You would make baked goods for customers in shops and supermarkets. Or you’d bake and sell your hand-made products in a small craft bakery or delicatessen.
As well as bread and rolls, you’d make other items such as pastries, pies, cakes and biscuits. You’d also decorate and fill them with cream, fruit, jam or icing so they look appetising and taste delicious.
You would:
weigh out the ingredients
mix the ingredients according to the recipe
work out cooking times
shape the individual products
bake the goods in ovens
Once they are baked you'd get them ready to put on display and sell. You'd decorate cakes and pastries, and wrap and label the products.
You’d need to order supplies to ensure you have enough ingredients to make everything you need.
You could also experiment with ingredients and recipes to create new products for customers to enjoy. You’d need to meet hygiene, and health and safety standards.
You’d usually work in one of three types of bakery.
At a plant bakery, you’d use specialist machinery to make large amounts of baked goods for shops, supermarkets and other large customers.
As an in-store baker in a supermarket, you’d use some machinery to make fresh products to be sold in the store.
At a craft bakery, you’d make small quantities of products which will be sold in a shop, delicatessen or chain of specialist shops. The work would be more varied and although you’d use some machinery, you’d do much of the work by hand.
Hours
Environment
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Food and drink
Top skills
Skills are things you're good at. Whether you know what yours are or not, everyone has them!
It's useful to learn which ones are important in a job so you know the areas you need to brush up on. It can also help you work out if you're suited to a career.
Here are some of the skills you'll need to do this job:
- time management
- managing resources
- developing a plan
- attention to detail
- innovative
- creative
- cooperating
Your skills are important
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Getting in
Explore the sections shown for more information about getting into this career.
You might have qualifications which are not shown here but will allow you access to a course. You can compare your qualifications by looking at their SCQF Level. For more information about this, check out the SCQF website.
Always contact the college, university or training provider to check exactly what you'll need.
Colleges and universities will list subjects you'll need for entry to a course. Some useful subjects include:
Health and Food Technology
Hospitality: Practical Cake Craft
Hospitality: Practical Cookery
Skills for Work: Food and Drink Manufacturing Industry
Foundation Apprenticeship: Hospitality
You can get a head start in this career by doing a Foundation Apprenticeship in S5 and S6.
You'll get an SCQF level 6 qualification which is the same level as a Higher. You'll also learn new skills and gain valuable experience in a work environment.
Discover what's on offer at your school on Apprenticeships.scot.
Enter this job:
directly with qualifications at SCQF Levels 4 to 6, or
through a Modern Apprenticeship leading to relevant work-based experience and qualifications such as a Scottish Vocational Qualification in Food Manufacture: Craft Bakery Skills (SVQ Level 2), or
by completing a college course in an appropriate subject such as a NC Bakery (SCQF level 5) or NPA Bakery (SCQF Level 4)
You can enter some National Qualification courses (SCQF 2-6) with no formal qualifications.
A National Certificate (NC) or National Progression Award (NPA) usually requires a minimum of three National 4 qualifications (SCQF Level 4).
Qualifications and experience that demonstrate an interest in food and catering such as Skills for Work Food and Drink (SCQF Level 5) or Hospitality (SCQF Level 4/5).
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