Stronger Starts Cafe Apprenticeship

About the role

Our Stronger Starts Café Apprenticeship is a great opportunity to build your confidence, develop new skills and gain hands-on experience while working as part of a friendly café team.

You’ll join us as a Café Team Member and, after three months of settling into work, enrol onto a Level 2 Food and Hospitality Apprenticeship .

Your apprenticeship will give you the opportunity to develop your knowledge and practical experience while working within the Café.

As part of your working pattern, your days may change from week to week depending on the café rota and can include weekends and Bank Holidays . You’ll need to be available to work shifts Monday to Sunday between 6:30am and 6:00pm

You don’t need to know everything from day one. You’ll learn on the job, gaining experience across both front and back of house. This could include preparing and serving food and drinks, providing great customer service, keeping the café clean and welcoming, and learning how we operate safely and legally.

We know that starting work and an apprenticeship can feel like a big step, so you’ll have support throughout your journey. You’ll also receive support from The King’s Trust , including three months of in-work support through their Power Up programme.

We recruit on a rolling basis, so early applications are encouraged. Positions may close as soon as we’ve received enough suitable applications, which means some roles may fill earlier than others.

If you have any questions about the recruitment process or require additional support, please contact the recruitment team at [email protected] or on 0207 654 7212.

What is in it for you

We offer excellent benefits that help make Tesco a great place to work. These include but aren’t limited to:

- Salary: £14,217.84 based on a 21-hour working week*
- Holiday allowance: 20 days pro rata plus, plus Bank Holidays
- Virtual GP service
- 24/7 access to our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
- Colleague Clubcard discount**
- Life Assurance
- Pension Scheme**
- Save As You Earn Scheme**
- Paid Family Leave
- Long Service Awards

You will be responsible for

As a Café Team Member Apprentice, you’ll learn how to support both the front and back of house and help give our customers a great experience.

As you build your skills and confidence, you’ll get involved in activities such as:

- Preparing, cooking and serving food in line with our Café menu
- Preparing a range of hot and cold drinks
- Serving customers and providing friendly, helpful service
- Learning and following food safety and hygiene standards
- Keeping the café, kitchen and equipment clean, safe and welcoming
- Making sure food and drink are available and prepared to the right standard
- Supporting stock rotation and the safe storage of food
- Helping to reduce food waste
- Clearing and sanitising tables
- Supporting with washing and cleaning café equipment and utensils
- Working closely with other Team Members, Team Leaders and your Café Manager
- Completing learning to help you develop your knowledge and skills
- Keeping up to date with important business communications
- Helping to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for everyone.

The real success in this role will come from being willing to get stuck in, learn new things and work as part of a team . You don’t need to arrive with lots of experience. We’re looking for people who are enthusiastic about learning and creating a great experience for our customers.

You will need

To become an apprentice, you’ll need to meet the following eligibility criteria:

- You have full right to work in the United Kingdom throughout the duration of the apprenticeship and, if you are an overseas national, your visa is not subject to employment restrictions and you are not on a student visa.
- You will have been resident in the UK or a country within the European Economic Area (EEA) for at least three consecutive years by September 2027, unless you meet an applicable exemption.
- You are not planning to return to funded education or training whilst completing the apprenticeship.
- You have not already completed a related hospitality degree or hospitality qualification at Level 2 or above.
- You must be at least 18 years old by September 2027.
- You are available to work 21 hours per week from September.
- You can work flexibly across the Café rota, including weekends and Bank Holidays

Apprenticeship eligibility criteria are set externally and are subject to change.

In order to be eligible for the role and apprenticeship, we are only able to take forward applications from external candidates who have not previously been employed by Tesco. If you are an internal colleague, please visit Colleague Help to find out more about our internal apprenticeship opportunities.

What we’re looking for

You don’t need to have previous café experience to show us you could be a great fit. We’re looking for someone who:

- Has an interest in hospitality and providing great customer service
- Enjoys working as part of a team
- Has a positive and proactive attitude
- Is willing to learn and try new things
- Can communicate well with customers and colleagues
- Can adapt to a busy, fast-paced environment.

About us

You might know us as a supermarket, technology company or even for our award-winning mobile network or through our Café’s. Truth is, we’re all those things, and much more. Our colleagues work with one goal in mind: helping to make every day a little better for our customers, colleagues and communities.

No two people are the same, and we want you to feel supported throughout your application. You can talk to us about any support or reasonable adjustments you might need during the recruitment process.