Kitchen manager (head chef)
Lead a team of staff in a kitchen to make delicious food to serve to customers.
Also known as: head chef
About the job
Salary
Source: LMI for All
Weekly
£470
Average
Monthly
£2,036
Average
Yearly
£24,440
Average
6,700
people are currently employed
High growth
200 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 lead a team of staff, run a kitchen and make delicious food to serve to customers.
You would use your knowledge and experience of professional cooking to organise and oversee the work of the kitchen staff.
You’d decide which tasks need to be done and share these among the team. You would also be involved in some of the preparation and cooking of food.
You could work in any organisation where there is a restaurant, such as businesses, hospitals, schools and universities. Head chefs who work in schools and hospitals are responsible for making sure that the food they serve is healthy.
You would:
Plan menus
Make sure food is of the right quality and price
Make sure food is ready on time
Manage stocks of food
Order ingredients from suppliers
Control the budget and keep accurate records
Manage health and hygiene procedures
Organise the staff duty rota
Recruit, train and develop staff
You’d need to work quickly and calmly when under pressure and deal with unexpected situations.
Hours
Environment
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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:
- taking responsibility
- mentoring
- making decisions
- delegating
- coaching
- developing a plan
- attention to detail
- creative
- verbal communication
- listening
Your skills are important
Our unique skillsets are what make us stand out from the crowd. Learn about each skill in depth and discover what employers look for in your applications and interviews.
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: Hospitality
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.
Most kitchen managers/head chefs will have worked their way up from trainee/apprentice chef jobs and have relevant qualifications such as a Scottish Vocational Qualification in:
Hospitality: Professional Cookery (SVQ level 3)
Hospitality: Supervision and Leadership (SVQ level 3)
Though you must have relevant work-based qualifications and experience in a professional kitchen, experience in running your own section, or other management or leadership experience and qualifications may be of value.
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