The people who make it happen

THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE IT HAPPEN

Our staff are important to us here at Edsential as they keep the organisation running.

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We handpick talented staff who are motivated, dedicated and want to produce memorable, super tasty food

We recognise that our kitchen staff are our most important asset. They are directly responsible for delivering your service and we love that they are often considered to be a part of your school community.

Our specialist, in-house staff training follows a formal training plan to ensure that all staff are provided with the skills they require to deliver excellence, including:

Manual handling

COSHH

Customer service training

TUPE process

NVQ qualifications

Safeguarding

Food hygiene

Health and safety

I began my school catering career as a Kitchen Assistant 6 years ago at Wolverham Primary school, working for another catering company. I was moved across to Edsential in 2018 and have never looked back! With Edsential I have been given so many training and development opportunities - from accredited courses and qualifications to 1-1 in-house training by my Catering Supervisor at the time, building my skills and confidence.

This support from Edsential means I have been able to progress to the role of Catering Supervisor, running my own kitchen at Childer Thornton Primary School. There is no better feeling than seeing children cheering when their favourite meal is on the menu or returning their empty plates at the end of service with full tummies. It’s even better knowing that the food they’re getting is high quality and nutritious.

The menus we prepare are made from scratch by us every morning, with fresh fruit and vegetables, meat from the local butcher, and home-baked biscuits and cakes (with less sugar than ever - not that the children can tell!).

Our roast dinners are made with beautifully cut joints of meat and ‘Fish Fridays’, made with sustainably sourced fish, are firm favourites with the children.

VICKI

CATERING SUPERVISOR AT CHILDER THORNTON PRIMARY SCHOOL

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THE CATERING MANAGEMENT TEAM

Tracy

Tracy Moore - Head of Catering

Tracy has worked in the catering industry for over 30 years and has specialised in school catering for over 25 years. Tracy is the strategic lead for the service but also works operationally, enabling her to have a deep understanding of the business and of the customers we work with. Tracy has excellent relationship management and change management skills, which allow her to drive innovation, efficiencies and provide best value and the highest quality of food.

Sarita

Sarita Wallis - Menu and Supply Chain Manager

Sarita has undertaken various roles in school catering and has a strong passion for food and ensuring children receive the best meals daily. Sarita ensures that all food sourced is of the highest quality, freshness and meets the strict food standards criteria. Sarita is also responsible for menu development.

Joanne

Joanne Redican - Senior Business Manager

Joanne has experience across both the private and public sector and has
experience in delivering high quality catering from the school kitchen right
through to fine dining establishments. Joanne is also a qualified level 3
NVQ training instructor and has delivered to Blue Chip companies. Joanne
joined the Catering team 18 years ago and her skills lie in empowering and
motivating teams.

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Jan Barlow -
Business Manager

Jan has experience in the education sector of catering and retail management. Her expertise is in customer service. Her 20+ years in catering gives her unparalleled knowledge to help schools operate an efficient catering provision. Jan works with a high number of schools, supporting teams to become as effective as possible.

Christine

Christine Penney - Business Manager

Christine specialises in the Secondary sector and she spent many years running one of the busiest high school kitchens in the county. Christine was promoted to Operations Manager 17 years ago and now works across both the Primary and Secondary sectors supporting schools and staff in delivering high quality provision.

Quality ingredients

EVER CONSIDERED WORKING FOR THE EDSENTIAL CATERING TEAM?

We offer a competitive salary, our in-house staff training follows a formal training plan to ensure that all staff are provided with the skills they require to deliver excellence, including:- NVQ Catering qualifications- Safeguarding- Food Hygiene- Health & Safety including Manual Handling, COSHH and- Customer Service Training.

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Copy of Schools (2)

Our aim is to achieve the best for your school, your students, staff and governors nurturing positive client relationships, empowering a skilled workforce and driving a culture of high expectations.

Parents and Carers

There are so many reasons parents, carers and children opt for a school lunch: see what we can provide for your child and why it is important for you to consider signing up!