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Chefs

Chefs plan menus and prepare, or oversee the preparation of food in hotels, restaurants, clubs, private households and other establishments.

Wages

New workers
AVERAGE
Experienced
£10,882
£25,774
£38,751

New workers start around £10,882. Normal pay is £25,774 per year.
Highly experienced workers can earn up to £38,751.

Available jobs

In the past year there were 319,564 vacancies for this type of job

4.81%

Projected job growth over the next 8 years

Related courses

People work towards these careers by taking these courses at college and uni.

What they do most days?

  • Plans and co-ordinates kitchen work such as fetching, clearing and cleaning of equipment and utensils.

  • Ensures relevant hygiene and health and safety standards are maintained within the kitchen.

  • Supervises, organises and instructs kitchen staff and manages the whole kitchen or an area of the kitchen.

  • Plans menus, prepares, seasons and cooks foodstuffs or oversees their preparation and monitors the quality of finished dishes.

  • Requisitions or purchases and examines foodstuffs from suppliers to ensure quality.

Hard Skills

Hard skills are specific, learnable, measurable, often industry or occupation-specific abilities related to a position.

Skills are ranked based on the number of job adverts that list them as required skills.

  • Cooking

  • Food Safety And Sanitation

  • Restaurant Operation

  • Food Preparation

  • Menu Planning

  • Stock Control

  • Food Services

  • Hazard Analysis And Critical Control Points (HACCP)

  • Food Quality Assurance And Control

  • Control Of Substances Hazardous To Health (COSHH)

Soft Skills

Soft skills can be self-taught and usually do not necessitate a certain completed level of education.

Skills are ranked based on the number of job adverts that list them as required skills.

  • Communication

  • Management

  • Cleanliness

  • Operations

  • Customer Service

  • Detail Oriented

  • Leadership

  • Teamwork

  • Organizational Skills

  • Planning

How do I get a job like this?

People in these types of job started their career paths after studying courses like the ones below.

Routes to this career

See all

Food Science

University of Leeds

BSc (Hons) · 3 Years · Full-time · Leeds · 24/09/2025

Tariff points: 128/147

Food and Drink Engineer

University of Greenwich

DipHE · 2 Years · Full-time · Chatham · 09/2025

Tariff points: 96/96

Food and Nutrition Top-up

University College Birmingham

BSc (Hons) · 3 Years · Variable · Birmingham · 15/09/2025

Tariff points: N/A

Artisan Food Production

Nottingham Trent University

FdSc · 2 Years · Full-time · Southwell · 15/09/2025

Tariff points: 64/64

Culinary Arts

Newcastle College University Centre

FdA · 2 Years · Full-time · Newcastle upon Tyne · 08/09/2025

Tariff points: 64/64

Food Innovation and Technology

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise

FdSc · 2 Years · Full-time · Cookstown · 09/2025

Tariff points: 48/48

Culinary Arts

Grwp Llandrillo Menai

FdA · 3 Years · Part-time · Colwyn Bay · 08/09/2025

Tariff points: 48/48

Culinary Arts and Management

Middlesbrough College

FD · 2 Years · Part-time · Middlesbrough · 09/2025

Tariff points: 48/48

Food and Nutrition

Sheffield Hallam University

BSc (Hons) · 3 Years · Full-time · Sheffield · 22/09/2025

Tariff points: 112/120

Food Science and Nutrition

Queen's University Belfast

BSc (Hons) · 3 Years · Full-time · Belfast · 15/09/2025

Tariff points: N/A

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