Rick Stein Restaurants and Soho House step up their recruitment drives

Cornwall-based Rick Stein group has launched a Chef Apprenticeship scheme with anyone over the age of 16 encouraged to start the work-based scheme before September 2022.

Based in one of Rick Stein’s Cornwall kitchens, apprentices will learn on the job from the group’s senior chefs. They will benefit from weekly sessions with expert chef tutors from Truro & Penwith College learning skills such as filleting fish; making classic sauces and professional vegetable preparation.

Successful apprentices will receive a Level 2 in Professional Cookery qualification.

Apprentices will have the opportunity to gain paid work experience - earning at least £9.30 per hour for under 18s and £9.60 for over 18s. They will learn how to work effectively as a team with kitchen and front of house staff at Rick Stein’s Cornish restaurants, which include his flagship fine-dining venue The Seafood Restaurant, The Cornish Arms pub and the much-loved Rick Stein Café. 

They will work 40 hours per week with eight of those at Truro & Penwith College from September 2022 and will receive the same benefits as Rick Stein employees – including 50% off in all restaurants, 20% in shops and online and discounted hotel stays and cookery courses; flexible shifts; tax free tips and 28 days paid holiday.   

After successfully completing the apprenticeship, students will be offered a permanent contract as a Rick Stein chef in one of the group’s kitchens and the scheme will continue to invest in their development, offering future promotional opportunities.

Soho House looks to fill 250 vacancies

Soho House, meanwhile, has bolstered its employment benefits as it looks to fill more than 250 vacancies across its UK sites.

Starting in April, the company will pay one and a half times the hourly rate for employees working late night shifts. Team members who work from 10pm until close will also receive a £10 contribution towards taxi journeys home.

As part of a wider staff recruitment and retention strategy, Soho House is offering competitive site-based salaries, guaranteeing contracted hours and holiday entitlement, and weekly payment cycles. It has also introduced an enhanced family leave policy that includes maternity and adoption leave for the primary caregiver at full pay for up to six months, alongside four weeks’ paternity leave.

Employees can also use the Family Meal benefit, which offers food options cooked by in-house chefs and kitchen teams. They also receive three days’ paid leave for volunteering.

Soho House has recently announced a number of new openings in the UK, including in Balham in south London and in Manchester,​​ and has also just opened a new members club and restaurant in Brighton.

“Reopening after Covid has been a challenge but our teams have risen to the challenge. They continue to make us who we are and give our members best-in-class service and experiences,” says Tom Collins, UK Managing Director at Soho House.

“We’re committed to making sure they feel valued, supported and compensated as part of the Soho House family.”