Find your place in the field of good food

Our goal is to connect good people with good food. We advertise sustainable food jobs and training opportunities to help jobseekers and employers find each other.

Roots to Work is a project of Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming.

Job description

About Hackney School of Food

Hackney School of Food (HSoF)  is a vibrant community-centred food education hub in East London. Our mission is to enhance the health and well-being of children, their families, and our wider community by sharing skills, knowledge, and opportunities to grow and cook nutritious and sustainable food from scratch.

In March 2025, we will be launching our new Garden Room which will enable us to deliver a new garden-focused programme of activities for schools, community groups, teams, and the wider Hackney community. 

We are seeking an experienced Garden Educator to collaborate with us in developing a new garden-based curriculum. We want the curriculum to engage and inspire our community, including schools, adults and corporate teams, to learn about food growing. The programme will link to our cooking lessons, while making use of our varied garden resources, which include beehives, growing beds, fire pits, an orchard, composting areas and chicken coops. 

Role Overview

This is a short-term freelance position with the potential for ongoing opportunities once the Garden Room is operational. 

The outcomes we want from this role are:

• A new garden-based curriculum: Develop a hands-on, engaging programme for school children that deepens understanding of sustainable food growing and horticulture. 
• Adaptable programmes for diverse audiences: Design tailored programmes for schools, community groups, and corporate teams, focusing on the connections between food growing, sustainability, and health.
• Training and resources for our team: Provide high-quality training and materials to upskill the Hackney School of Food team, ensuring consistent and impactful programme delivery.

Key responsibilities

1. Schools Curriculum Development

• Work with the HSoF team to create a set of adaptable classes, teachable across Key Stages that aligns with the HSoF’s mission and ethos and makes best use of HSoF’s garden resources.
• Consult with teachers to test the new curriculum and ensure it delivers with what teachers want (e.g. aligning with the Department for Education’s new guidance on eco-education and schools’ Climate Action Plans).
• Work with the HSoF kitchen team to align garden-based curriculum with food education classes.
• Work with the HSoF garden team to ensure the garden environment is suitable for delivering the new curriculum. 
• Work with schools and community groups to deliver pilot sessions and conduct structured feedback sessions.

2. Community classes

• Work with HSoF’s team to design a range of adult classes. Potential topics include:
  • Introduction to food growing.
  • Skill-based classes (e.g.composting, propagation).
• Tailor classes to meet the needs of different skill levels and demographics.

3. Team-building classes

• Shape an offer for corporate customers that focus on well-being, team-building, and connection to nature through garden-based activities.

4. Training and resources

• Develop materials and lesson plans that can be used by freelancers and staff to teach the garden curriculum.
• Deliver training sessions to upskill HSoF staff and freelancers in our new curriculum’s delivery.

Person specification

We are looking for someone with:

• Experience in facilitation and teaching: Demonstrated ability to work with diverse audiences, including children and adults, in community and educational settings.
• Knowledge of food growing and sustainability: Practical understanding of gardening techniques and ecological principles.
• Curriculum development skills: Experience designing engaging, practical, and sustainable food growing educational programmes.
• Training expertise: Proven ability to train others, providing clear guidance and resources.
• Collaborative mindset: Ability to quickly form relationships and work with a team to embed and share learning.

Time Commitment

• Start Date: mid-January 2025
• End Date: end of March 2025
• Hours: 10 days total.

Application information

To apply, please send your CV and a cover letter outlining your relevant experience and approach to garden-based education to hello@hackneyschooloffood.com with ‘Garden Educator’ in the subject line. The deadline for applicants is Sunday 5 January at midday. 

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