Find your place in the field of good food

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Job description

About The Felix Project, our Vision & Mission. 

The Felix Project is London's biggest food redistribution charity and the largest end-to-end food redistribution charity in Europe. 

Our vision is a London where no one goes hungry and good food is never wasted.

Our mission is to rescue good food from becoming waste and divert it to people most in need. We work towards ending London hunger - and winning the fight against food waste. 

What do we do and who do we work with? 

• We rescue surplus food from businesses, supermarkets, restaurants, and farms. This food is nutritious, in-date, and safe and includes a high proportion of fresh vegetables, fruit, meat and fish. 
• If we did not rescue this food, it would be at risk of going to waste. Instead, we deliver it free of charge to London charities, schools, food banks, and other organisations serving people in need. 
• Our food is a vital lifeline for children and families, people on low incomes, people who have lost their jobs, the homeless, refugees, domestic abuse survivors, the elderly and keyworkers. 
• We already operate a Central Production Unit (CPU) in East London where we use surplus food to create  Felix Meals, these meals change daily depending on the ingredients that are available. On average we make 4,500 Felix Ready Meals, 6  days a week. 

We are a very ambitious and dynamic young charity and we haven’t stopped growing since we were founded in 2016 in memory of Felix Byam Shaw, by his father, entrepreneur Justin Byam Shaw. Unit 17 is an exciting part of our future growth and our continued development in the world of production. 

 

More about Unit 17

• In early 2025 we will open our second production facility as  part of the Coronation Food Project. The Coronation Food Project was set up to celebrate His Majesty King Charles 75th birthday and seeks to bridge the gap between food waste and food need across the UK.
• We will be taking in surplus food from our supplier network and creating a range of products which have added value and extended shelf life. 
• A particular focus will be seasonal produce gluts, using ingredients which we may otherwise not be able to redistribute. 

• Using four key processes (re-packaging, jarring / preserving, dehydrating and freezing) we will create a range of products which will be used in these three main ways: 
  • Distributed to our partner community organisations as ‘ready to eat’ or ‘easy to use’ products for their service users - always delicious, achieving relevant safety standards and meeting the needs of the eventual end user .
  • Used in the East London Central Production Unit (CPU) to support creating Felix Ready Meals. 
  • Used  in Unit 17 in the creation of other products (for example frozen produce later used to make jarred sauces or preserves)

• A typical day at Unit 17 will likely include planning new product/s based on the ingredients available that day, agreeing relevant food safety requirements and working in line with this, working with the production team and volunteers to prepare, produce and package delicious products, planning for future products and project work. 

Purpose of the Job

To be the second most senior manager on site, but with your focus area being all about the production lines, ensuring they are running smoothly and to standard. Supporting and line managing the junior members of the production team. The core of this role will be to work alongside the Unit manager to ensure that the day-to-day operations are meeting standards, we are maximising the volume of surplus food we can take in and production aims/targets are being met. Also working closely with the development and technologist to ensure that the products specification, safety standards and aims are being delivered on the ground. This will be a hands-on role being present in the production spaces as well as office based, but a fully on-site role.

This will be a truly unique operation, with a varied supply of food in meaning an adaptable output of products, all of which will be going out to the charities we support. Maintaining this adaptability

Duties and Accountabilities

• Be a key member of the project team that opens the new unit
• Support in the creation and delivery of all required H&S, Food Safety and HACCP plans
• Working with all internal stake holders across the departments at the Felix Project
• Feeding into the reporting on and delivering against the units stated KPI’s and development goals
• Participate and conduct internal and external audits, meeting the required standards
• Working closely with the Food Supply team to understand the units needs as well as upcoming trends in, in-bound supply
• Be responsible and accountable for the safety, quality and outcomes of the production lines.
• Supporting the product & technologist to ensure we can continue to improve our product range, quality and output.
• Own the training and development of all levels of the production team.  Actively coach, develop, recruit and train team members to the required level of competence ensuring that the necessary skills are in place at all levels.
• Ensure that a safe working environment exists for all employees in the team and support the business plans relating to health & safety and the environment
• Support the technical team in the investigation and evaluation of innovative new process technology to improve existing practices and practice ongoing process development

Person Specification

The Felix Project recognises the positive value of diversity and is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workforce.  We encourage applications from all suitably qualified or experienced individuals, regardless of their race, gender, biological sex, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation or age. 

This is a brand new and unique operation and requires someone with a depth of experience and an openness to creating and delivering on a new project. Someone who believes in the mission we have as an organisation and wants to put their experience and knowledge into a mission driven organisation.  We believe in an upbeat and enjoyable working environment but one that is driven to meet our targets and strategic goals.

Whilst extensive previous experience and knowledge within food production is essential, we are looking for someone who wants to grow into the role and be able to develop themselves and their knowledge whilst we create this new operation. Thriving in the challenge of a unit which works with an ever-changing food supply and a volunteer driven work force.  

Essential skills/knowledge relevant to this role 

• Experience within a production management role in a food production operation
• Comfortable with all relevant aspects of Health & Safety and Food Safety procedures in a large-scale food manufacturing environment
• Previous experience in creating and delivering on detailed HACCP plans
• Clear eye for detail, team player, enjoys the work they do and a strong work ethic.
• Strong people and management skills, a positive attitude and belief in an ethical, equitable and enjoyable working environment.
• Comfortable in working in a fast changing and growing work environment.
• Very strong administrative and organisational skills.
• Willingness to drive a project forward and take ownership of this.
• Strong computer literacy and strong written communication skills.

Desirable skills/knowledge relevant to this role 

• Previous experience in the charity or surplus food environment
• Level 3 or higher Food Safety qualified
• A track record of delivering new and innovative food products
• Experience in dehydration, pasteurization and food packaging
• Experience working with and managing volunteers
• A passion to reduce food waste and reduce food insecurity
• A desire to develop this role and department

What you’ll get in return

You will be working in an upbeat, innovative charity with strong vision, ambition and a fantastic culture and leadership team.  This role is in our new facility at Deptford Trading Estate, SE8 5HY but you may be asked to occasionally work in one of our other locations and will be asked to work in outside venues as part of your duties. The salary is £38 - 41,000 (FTE) per annum, 25 days annual leave + bank holidays.

Contract Type:  Permanent

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (full time), Monday-Saturday, Shift basis –Any 7.5h between 07:30 and 20:00. We will at times work outside of these hours.

Application information

I hope this role sounds as exciting as it does to us. 

If you would like to apply for this role, please email me at

nick.kerle@thefelixproject.org

Please attach your CV and a covering letter for this role.

I hope to hear from you soon. 

All the best, 

Nick

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