📍 Location: The Brick Community Stadium
📑 Contract: Permanent
👤 Reports to: Managing Director – Wigan Sporting Events
⏳ Hours: 40 hours per week
📅 Closing Date: 4th October 2026

Role Purpose:

The Head of Catering is responsible for overseeing all catering operations within the stadium, ensuring high-quality food and beverage service across all events and venues. This is a major sporting and events venue hosting both Football (Wigan Athletic) and Rugby League (Wigan Warriors) with fixtures throughout the year, alongside a busy calendar of non-matchday events.

This role is responsible for ensuring operational excellence, high customer satisfaction, and financial performance through effective leadership, strategic planning, and collaboration with internal teams and external partners.

The Head of Catering drives a culture of premium hospitality in both concourse retail as well as all Hospitality areas. They will take full ownership and accountability for the catering Profit and Loss, while managing relationships and liaising effectively with all relevant catering partners and suppliers.

Key responsibilities and duties

Client & Guest Experience:

• Build strong relationships with key clients, sponsors, and partners to understand and deliver on their catering needs.
• Ensure service standards and guest expectations are consistently exceeded.
• Creativity in ensuring a strong product offering for all guests, in both GA & Premium.
• Identify opportunities for organic revenue growth in both GA & Premium.
• Ensure consistently strong communication with respective clubs in the lead up to matchdays and ensuring all necessary post-game feedback is garnered and then acted upon to ensure the highest of standards are consistently attained.
  
  

Operational Management:

• Oversee the day-to-day catering and hospitality operations across the stadium venue including but not limited to hospitality suites and function rooms. Inclusive of bars, kiosks, kitchens and auxiliary areas.
• Responsible for the day-to-day management of the catering team, recruitment, induction, training, and overall performance management
• Lead on all KPI reporting and management of full catering P&L
• Develop and execute operational plans, including staffing, logistics, and service delivery.
• Co-ordinate closely with event management, culinary, and concessions teams, with regards to developing the food and beverage provision.

Act as the Stadium Duty Manager in line with the operations rota for the purpose of Fire Evacuation and other related duties including but not limited opening and closing the facility when required.

Leadership & Team Management

• Manage and motivate a large team, including department heads, chefs, supervisors, and casual event staff.
• Oversee recruitment, training, development, and scheduling to ensure a high-performing workforce.
• Foster a culture of accountability, teamwork, and customer-first service.
• Clear communicator with exceptionally high standards

• Work closely with the Sales and Marketing teams to ensure client expectations are managed and successfully delivered.
  
  

Financial Performance

• Develop, manage, and report on departmental budgets, including forecasting, cost controls, and profit margins.
• Monitor financial performance against agreed KPIs, taking appropriate action to ensure revenue and expenditure remain in line with budgeted targets. Drive commercial performance through upselling strategies, product innovation, and promotions.

• Develop and maintain effective relationships with suppliers, negotiating prices and contracts following agreed procurement guidelines and addressing any concerns as required.
  
  

Payroll

• Responsible for liaising with the Finance Department to ensure accurate and timely payroll processing.
• Have accountability for labor costs and workforce planning.
• Review casual workers and agency staffing costs, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, optimise staffing levels and reduce expenditure where appropriate.
  
  

Health and safety

• Fully endorse, demonstrate and carry out the company’s health and safety policy.
• Comply with all company policies and statutory regulations relating to health and safety, safe working practices, hygiene, cleanliness, fire and COSHH. This will include your awareness of any specific hazards in your work place, and assist if required with the amending of risk assessments periodically.
• Have a full knowledge of procedures for evacuation with regard to fire.

Identify and promptly report any maintenance requirements, hazards or potential risks within the workplace, while encouraging all staff to do the same to help maintain a safe working environment and prevent injury.To ensure that the food operation is carried out in a hygienic and safe manner. Endorsing both legal food standard regulations and company food policy adhering to the company Hazzard Analysis Critical Control Point food safety system.

Safeguarding

• The company is committed to safeguarding the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to endorse this commitment.

The employee must act to protect all young people and vulnerable adults that are in their care or attending the company’s premises. The employee must report any misconduct or suspected misconduct to the Head of Safeguarding.

General

• Co-operate fully with colleagues and be flexible when assisting them in response to business needs of the company.
• Ensure a positive commitment towards equality and diversity by treating others fairly and not committing any form of direct or indirect discrimination, victimisation or harassment of any description and to promote positive working relations amongst employees and customers.
• The above job description is not intended to be exhaustive; the duties and responsibilities may therefore vary over time according to the changing needs of the company.
• To have a hands on approach with regards to setting, delivery and clean down of events
• To assist when required with the catering operation at other venues within the group

DBS check required: Yes

Qualifications, Skills, Experience and Knowledge:

• Proven experience in a beverage or catering management role, preferably in a stadium, large venue, or event-based environment.
• Strong financial acumen with experience managing large budgets and full P&L responsibility.
• Demonstrated success in leading large teams in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Excellent organisational and project management skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills and developing client relationships.
• Excellent collaborator & leader with key internal stakeholders

Clear communicator, good at motivating people and the setting of exceptional standard.