Trainee Apprentice Chef

Love cooking? Spend the next 12 months turning your passion into professional skills.

• Pay: £13.03 per hour
• Hours: 37.5 hours per week, working any 5 days out of 7, including weekends
• Shifts: 06:30–14:30, 12:00–20:00 or 10:00–18:00
• Location: Swinton Barracks, Perham Down, Andover, Hampshire, SP11 9LQ
• Programme: 12-month apprenticeship with a fully funded qualification
• Experience: None required — bring your enthusiasm and willingness to learn!

Earn while you learn and cook up your future

Enjoy trying recipes at home, baking for family or getting creative in food technology lessons? Perhaps you’ve always wanted to become a chef but haven’t known where to start.

Your journey could start here with Sodexo.

Join our kitchen team at Swinton Barracks for a 12-month chef apprenticeship, where you’ll learn from experienced professionals while helping prepare meals for the Armed Forces community.

You’ll get hands-on experience, earn a wage and work towards a fully funded apprenticeship qualification. From preparing your first ingredients to helping deliver a busy meal service, you’ll build your skills and confidence through practical learning.

No previous kitchen experience or food technology qualifications are needed. Your interest in food, positive attitude and commitment to learning are what matter.

What you’ll learn and do

Throughout your 12-month apprenticeship, you’ll:

• Develop essential cooking skills — learn to prepare ingredients, use kitchen equipment and cook a range of dishes.
• Get involved in daily service — help prepare, cook and present tasty, nutritious meals.
• Discover how a professional kitchen works — build your understanding of timing, organisation and teamwork.
• Learn food safety essentials — develop your knowledge of allergens, hygiene and safe food handling.
• Take pride in the whole kitchen — support cleaning, preparation and keeping work areas safe and organised.
• Put your learning into practice — take feedback from experienced chefs and grow your confidence.
• Work towards your qualification — complete the apprenticeship learning and assessments alongside your practical work.

What you’ll bring

• A passion for food and a real interest in becoming a chef.
• Willingness to commit to the full 12-month apprenticeship, including learning and assessments.
• Enthusiasm for getting involved in every part of kitchen life.
• A reliable, supportive approach and willingness to work the advertised shifts.
• Readiness to follow instructions, ask questions and learn from feedback.

Whether you cook at home, enjoyed food lessons at school or are starting from scratch, we’d love to hear what interests you about this opportunity.

What’s in it for you?

• Earn £13.03 per hour while you learn.
• Complete a fully funded apprenticeship qualification over a 12-month programme.
• Learn from experienced chefs in a supportive kitchen team.
• Build skills for your future, with opportunities to explore career development within Sodexo.
• Wellbeing support, including an Employee Assistance Programme, online resources and 24/7 virtual GP access.
• Financial benefits, including discounts for you and your family, financial wellbeing support, a retirement plan and death-in-service benefit.
• Extra perks, including a Cycle to Work scheme, volunteering opportunities, training and uniform.

Bring your enthusiasm. We’ll help you build your skills.

You don’t need a CV full of kitchen experience to get started. If you’re excited about cooking and ready to commit to a year of learning, apply today and take your first step towards becoming a skilled chef with Sodexo.

Planning your journey? Check your route using Traveline, entering SP11 9LQ as your destination. Please check that transport options work with the advertised shift times.