Cafe Manager
Job Title: Cafe Manager
Reports To: Director of Corporate Affairs
Contract: Full Time \- Permanent
Hours: 37\.5 hours per week (Monday to Friday) Occasional evenings and weekend work may be required
Salary: £33,749\.49 per annum
Location: Brewster Square, Livingston, West Lothian, EH54 9BJ
Closing Date: Monday 27th July 2026
Shortlisting Dates: Monday 27th July 2026
Interview Dates: Tuesday 11th August 2026
Do you love food, people, and making a difference?
At The Larder, we believe a café can be so much more than a place to eat. Our cafés are training hubs where people gain skills, confidence, and opportunities to move forward in life. Every meal served helps create change.
Can you help us create this change?
About The Larder
The Larder is a social enterprise on a mission to use food as a force for positive change. Our cafés don’t just serve delicious food, they provide training, employment, and support for people facing barriers to work.
Every day, our cafés are a place of learning, inclusion, and community.
We’re looking for an enthusiastic and organised Café Manager to lead our Café at Brewster Square, Livingston. This is a hands\-on role combining kitchen expertise, team leadership, and a love for creating a welcoming community space.
The Role
The role will suit someone who enjoys working with people, keeping things running smoothly, and creating a welcoming community space through the delivery of really good wholesome food. You don’t need to be a professional chef, but you do need to love food, care about people, and have the confidence to lead a small team.
This is your chance to run a café with purpose, where your skills will help shape both a business with purpose and a stronger community.
Main Duties \& Responsibilities:
- Lead the day\-to\-day running of the café and kitchen area including service.
- Cook simple, tasty meals that are good value and bring customers back.
- Keep the café clean, safe, and compliant with all food hygiene standards and legislation.
- Manage stock, ordering, and suppliers to keep things cost\-effective.
- Make the café a real community hub, with options for everyone.
- Motivate and support your team, including trainees on Larder programmes.
- Help recruit, welcome and train new staff when needed.
- Monitor sales and costs to make sure the café stays sustainable.
- Create and maintain rotas, approve leave, and monitor attendance to ensure records are accurate and secure
- Follow all cash procedures, making sure transactions, reconciliation, weekly banking and records are accurate and secure
- Ensure the café remains safe, compliant, and well\-run at all times, taking responsibility for HACCP, allergen management, and health and safety standards across the site.
- Support, supervise and guide trainees and young people undertaking placements within the café, providing a safe, structured and supportive learning environment to help them develop practical skills, confidence and employability
- Look at customer habits and feedback to guide menu ideas and specials.
- Take part in seasonal promotions and campaigns to boost footfall.
- Share what’s working in the café so the team can use EPOS data and customer trends to improve engagement.
- Develop ideas to support the sustainability of the cafe
- Work with colleagues to review sales and performance
Person Specification
Essential
- At least 3 years’ experience in a café, kitchen or similar environment, with similar responsibilities.
- Confident cooking skills, you can plan and prepare simple, tasty meals.
- Experience of pricing menus and sourcing the best and most efficient ingredients.
- A people person, you know how to bring the best out of others, whether they’re experienced staff or learning on the job.
- Experience leading or supporting a team in a busy hospitality setting.
- REHIS Food Hygiene and Safety qualification minimum level 2 or equivalent
- A team player, happy to work closely with staff in other Larder cafés and management.
- Organised and reliable, you can balance the cooking, the team, and the day\-to\-day running of a café.
- Experience and ability to support, supervise and guide trainees and young people in a safe, structured and supportive setting
- Experience using an EPOS till system.
- Understanding how data (sales trends, popular products, customer habits) can inform menu development and product ranges.
- Experience running promotions, specials or community\-focused events.
- Links with local communities, groups, or businesses
- Participate in any staff review/performance management processes involving the identifying and meeting of training needs for self and others.
- Take appropriate responsibility to ensure the health and safety of self and others.
- Pursue the achievement and integration of equal opportunities throughout all activities.
- Undertake any other tasks and responsibilities appropriate to the level of this post.
- Comply with all Larder policies and procedures
- Demonstrate The Larder values in your work on a daily basis
- The Larder is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share and promote this commitment.
- Some evening and weekend work may be required but notice will always be given
- Own car desirable
- PVG Scheme membership will be required for this post, as it involves regulated work with children and young people.
- A chance to lead and shape a café that makes a real difference in people’s lives.
- Competitive salary and benefits.
- Opportunities to develop menus, projects, and training initiatives.
- Supportive and inclusive working environment focused on growth and learning
- 29 days leave (inclusive of public holidays)
- 2 Health and Wellbeing days each year
- Company pension contribution of 3%
- Company sick pay scheme
- Opportunities to shape the future work of the organisation
- Access to company health and well being support
- Commitment to continued professional development
The covering letter should be no more than one A4 side and should tell us:
- Why you want to work with The Larder,
- How your skills and experience match this role
- 3\.What you would do in your first three months to grow the café sales
Pay: £33,749\.49 per year
Benefits:
- Company pension
- Free parking
- On\-site parking
- Sick pay
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