Café Assistant – Harlow Library & ACL Centre
Permanent, Part Time
Up to £25,959 per annum (full time equivalent)
Location: Harlow
Working Style: Fixed-base worker
Please note, this is part time role working 30 hours per week, 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday. The pro rata salary for this role will be £21,048 per annum.
Essex County Council are recruiting for a Café Assistant to work within the café at Harlow Library and ACL (Adult Community Learning) Centre. The café provides a welcoming space for library visitors, learners, staff, and members of the local community to enjoy refreshments and socialise.
As a Café Assistant, you will help to maintain a clean, safe, tidy, and welcoming environment for customers purchasing and consuming food and drink within the café. You will be responsible for serving customers, preparing and serving food and beverages, and undertaking basic food preparation in accordance with food safety regulations. You will also carry out washing up, clearing tables, general day-to-day cleaning duties, and scheduled deep cleaning activities in line with health and safety standards.
You will be expected to proactively identify and complete tasks to a high standard, operate tills and handle cash transactions, and assist with stock control, stocktaking, and the movement of supplies to ensure consumables are stored and used appropriately. You will be responsible for complying with all relevant health and safety procedures, ensuring the correct use and care of protective clothing and equipment at all times.
As a Café Assistant, you will play an important role in delivering an excellent customer experience by providing friendly, helpful, and professional service to all customers using the café within Harlow Library and ACL Centre.
The Experience You Will Bring
- Educated to RQF Level 2 (GCSE) or equivalent by experience.
- Experience of working within a Catering environment.
- Ability to develop skills and knowledge within role.
- Experience of delivering excellent customer service.
- Good communication skills, both verbal and written.
- Ability to prioritise own workload and work within a team.
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Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK.
Why Essex?
As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you.
In March 2026, the Government announced that councils in Greater Essex will be reorganised into five new unitary authorities from April 2028. In addition to this, Greater Essex has been accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our careers site.
Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.
Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs.
At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.
As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service
Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
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If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk
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