Cook volunteer jobs in Lewisham, greater london

Sessional Youth Worker – Training Kitchen

We are seeking a creative and engaging Sessional Youth Worker with a passion for cooking and supporting young people to build confidence, life skills and wellbeing through food.

Position: Sessional Youth Worker – Training Kitchen
Salary: £14.80 per hour London Living Wage | £16.00 per hour for Saturday evening shifts
Location: Burnt Oak, North West London
Working Pattern: Tuesday PM and Friday PM
Contract: Sessional / Part Time
Closing Date: Applications reviewed on a rolling basis

About the Role

This is a fantastic opportunity to combine your culinary skills with meaningful youth work in a vibrant community setting. Working within a dedicated training kitchen, you will support young people to develop cooking skills, confidence and healthy living habits through fun, engaging and inclusive sessions.

You will work with young people of all abilities, from beginners through to those considering catering or hospitality careers, helping to create a positive and supportive environment where everyone can learn and thrive.

Key responsibilities include:

• Delivering engaging cooking and food-based activities for young people
• Planning varied sessions and preparing ingredient requirements
• Supporting young people to build confidence, teamwork and practical life skills
• Creating activities suitable for a wide range of dietary needs and cultures
• Maintaining high standards of food hygiene and health and safety
• Building positive relationships with young people, volunteers and colleagues
• Supporting inclusive participation for young people with additional needs
• Promoting safeguarding, equality and wellbeing at all times

About You

We are looking for someone energetic, approachable and passionate about working with young people.

You will ideally have:

• Experience delivering cooking or food-based activities
• Experience working with young people in group or one-to-one settings
• A Level 2 Food Hygiene qualification
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills
• The ability to motivate and engage young people from diverse backgrounds
• An understanding of safeguarding and inclusive practice
• Flexibility to work evenings and weekends

Experience supporting young people facing social, emotional or behavioural challenges would be highly beneficial.

About the Organisation

Our client is an independent charity and purpose-built youth centre for Barnet’s young people aged 8 to 19, and up to 25 for those with additional needs. They support North London’s young people with three things they deserve and need; somewhere to go, something to do and someone to talk to. Open 7 days a week including school holidays, their vision ensure every young person is supported and empowered to reach their potential.

Join them in making a difference and raising the aspirations of young people across North London. They embrace diversity and welcome applications from individuals with non-traditional backgrounds. Safeguarding is paramount, and an enhanced DBS check is required. As an equal opportunity employer, they value individuals regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability.

Other roles you may have experience of could include: Youth Worker, Youth Support Worker, Community Youth Practitioner, Cooking Tutor, Catering Tutor, Hospitality Trainer, Food Workshop Facilitator, Activities Coordinator, Engagement Worker, Kitchen Facilitator or Youth Activities Lead. #INDNFP

Please note this role is advertised by the recruitment agency acting for the client – Not For Profit People.

Coin Street Nursery is seeking an experienced and passionate Head Chef to join our friendly and dedicated team. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who takes pride in creating fresh, nutritious meals from scratch and is committed to promoting healthy eating for young children.

While experience in a nursery or similar setting is desirable, it is not essential. We welcome candidates with strong catering experience in preparing meals at scale who share our values around nutrition and quality.

We operate a busy nursery, preparing meals for up to 80 children and staff daily. The successful candidate will be highly organised, able to manage their own workload, and committed to maintaining high standards across all areas of the kitchen.

We are proud of our 5-star food hygiene rating and our excellent standards of cleanliness. Maintaining health and safety, food hygiene, and compliance will be central to your role. Working within a set budget, you will also be responsible for effective menu planning, stock control, and food purchasing, ensuring meals remain fresh, healthy, and varied.

You will play a key role in meeting the diverse dietary needs of our children. A strong understanding of allergies, intolerances, and special diets is essential to ensure every child receives safe, high-quality meals.
You will be supported by a part-time kitchen assistant; however, you will retain overall responsibility for the kitchen, including end-of-day cleaning and organisation.

Key Responsibilities

• Plan and prepare nutritious, balanced meals for children and staff
• Manage kitchen operations, including ordering, stock control, and budgeting
• Maintain high standards of food hygiene, cleanliness, and safety
• Cater for a range of dietary requirements, including allergies and cultural preferences
• Lead and organise daily kitchen activities effectively

We are looking for a Head Chef who can demonstrate:

• A current Food Hygiene Certificate
• Significant experience preparing a wide range of meals in a non-domestic setting for large groups, ideally including young children
• Experience in menu planning, ordering, and stock management 
• Strong knowledge of dietary requirements, food hygiene, and health & safety 
• Good literacy, numeracy, and budget management skills 
• The ability to work collaboratively and communicate effectively with colleagues and children 
• A proactive approach to contributing to service development, including diverse and culturally inclusive menus

Creating an inspirational neighbourhood
We provide the opportunities and spaces for people to lead their own change.

Our activities are wide and far reaching. From giving families and children the best start in life through our childcare and family support, to creating and maintaining high quality live, work and play spaces on land which we own.

We promote enterprise, creativity and lifelong learning whether that’s through providing employment, volunteering opportunities, nurturing enterprise or delivering programmes and activities.  We provide housing that supports our community; we champion co-operative housing and influence local and national housing policy.

From sports and dance to healthy eating and gardening, we offer a range of facilities and activities accessible to everyone to support health and wellbeing in our community.

In return, we can offer you:

• 35 days’ annual leave (including bank holidays) pro rata for part time staff
• 8% contributory pension scheme (5% employer contribution, 3% employee contribution)
• Health and wellbeing support, including online mental health therapy sessions
• Free gym membership at Colombo, annual flu jabs
• Commitment to training and development

Contract
Permanent, 37.5 hours per week

Salary
£33,000 per annum

To Apply
To apply, please download and complete the application form. Once completed, submit your application via email. Please visit our website if you require more info.

Due to Safer Recruitment guidance, please note that additional documents, such as CVs, will not be considered.

Successful candidates will be required to undertake an Enhanced DBS check. 

Closing Date
Please send your application by midnight on 21 June 2026

We're looking for a kind, compassionate and resilient Waking Night Support Worker to join our Young People Service located in Ealing. No experience required, just the right values.

£30,784.00 per annum, working 40 hours per week.

Want to feel in control of your career? You'll feel at home here.

Making you feel at home here means helping you thrive in every way. That's why we offer a wide range of benefits, award-winning Learning & Development and a culture that welcomes all. These aren't token gestures - we've thought long and hard about how best to support our team. After all, our people are doing something amazing: helping to transform lives every day.

Our benefits include:

• Annual leave increasing up to 30 days with length of service
• Free DBS
• A generous pension - we will contribute up to 8% and life assurance cover up to 3x Pensionable Salary (T&Cs apply)
• Exclusive discounts and cashback via Reward Gateway® and opportunity to buy a Blue Light Card

All applicants must be legally eligible to work in the UK by the start of employment as Look Ahead are not able to offer sponsorship.

This is a Waking Night Position; Night Support Workers enable people with particular needs to manage their tenancies and live independent lives of their choosing in the community. Night Support Workers are responsible for ensuring continuity of a support service at night and for keeping customers and the building safe.

Horn Lane is a Semi-Independent service for young people aged 16-21, we are a 24/7 service, we are Ofsted registered.

What you'll do:

This is not an exhaustive list of all the duties and responsibilities that may be required from time to time and is subject to change in accordance with the needs of Look Ahead

• Building supportive, trusting relationships with customers and creating a positive atmosphere
• Working proactively with other members of the team to handle the service caseload and administrative responsibilities
• Conducting key work sessions as required, that are innovative and engaging in order to achieve Support Plan goals
• Ensuring ongoing assessment and management of risks associated with customers within an attitude of 'positive risk taking'
• Providing support with daily living activities, including practical assistance to support customers to independent living e.g. budgeting, cooking, establishing a night time routine

About you:

• Enjoys social interaction and the company of others, joins in local activities to encourage customer involvement
• Exudes a warm friendly presence and open behaviour
• Prefers working as part of a group or team
• Is fundamentally calm and resilient, does not let emotion adversely affect them or obscure their judgement.

What you'll bring:

Essential:

• NVQ Level 2/3 or equivalent with some previous relevant sector work experience

About us:

Look Ahead is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults at risk, and expects all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment.

If your application for this role is unsuccessful, but we feel that you would be suitable for another role, we may contact you to discuss alternative opportunities. If this occurs you would not need to submit another application for the alternative role.

We reserve the right to close this advert early if we are able to appoint to the vacancy before the advertised closed date.

We are committed to diversity and inclusion at work and are accredited with Silver in the Inclusive Employers Standard 2021. We are a proud member of the Employers Domestic Abuse Covenant and encourage applications from a diverse range of applicants of all backgrounds.

L’Arche Internship Programme Lead

ABOUT THE ROLE

Hours of work: 30 hours per week (0.8 FTE)

Salary: £31,507.88 plus London weighting if based in London per annum (Banding E1). Pro-rata £25,205.30

Place of work: London or within commuting distance to one of L’Arche’s Communities. The role also involves regular travel to L’Arche Communities UK-wide and national meetings; overnight stays required for retreats

Contract type: Permanent. Part-time

Closing date: Wednesday, 3rd of June at 23:59

Note: This position does not offer sponsorship and is best suited for a candidate already located in the UK.

Lead a transformative live-in internship programme that inspires personal growth through meaningful relationships, shared community life, and reflective spiritual practice. 

We are looking for a passionate and compassionate Internship Programme Lead to shape and support the L'Arche Internship Programme, creating a great experience where reflective practice and belonging are at the heart of everyday life.

Main purpose of the role

The Internship Programme Lead is responsible for managing, delivering and continuously improving the L’Arche Internship Programme. 

Working with the Deputy Facilitator and local community leads, you will support recruitment and marketing, facilitate online sessions and two annual residential retreats, and ensure interns have a meaningful and impactful experience across L’Arche communities.

The role includes around one day per week focused on formation activities (retreats, online sessions and events).

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

• • Committed to living out L’Arche values authentically, with significant recent lived experience of L’Arche. 
  • Proven experience in group and individual support and facilitation, and mentoring (ideally within L’Arche or a similar setting). 
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to engage and inspire a diverse range of individuals. 
  • Excellent planning and organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities effectively. 
  • Confidently models creating spaces for giving and receiving clear, meaningful and evidence-based feedback. 
  • Able to empathise and provide support, work with group dynamics, manage boundaries, and demonstrate self-awareness and reflexivity. 
  • Demonstrable commitment to personal growth and reflective practice, particularly in spirituality and reflection; committed to ongoing development and learning. 
  • Promotes inclusion and belonging, creating cultures where people flourish. 
  • Willingness and ability to travel frequently to communities and residential retreats (including occasional overnight stays). 
  • Understanding of budget management and ability to support a financially sustainable programme.

Additional details about L'Arche can be found - here. 

A full job description and person specification can be found in the Recruitment Pack.

To apply, please submit your CV and answer the questions from our online application form. 

Closing date for applications is: Wednesday, 3rd of June at 23:59

We encourage you not to wait until the closing date to submit your application, as we may begin interviewing strong candidates before then.
We also reserve the right to close the advert early if we receive enough suitable applications.

Please also read our privacy notice for job applicants.