Our Values

It’s great to know that you are interested in working with us at Coventry City Council. As a prospective employee, it is important that everyone who works for us is committed to our One Coventry values and shares our commitment to becoming a more diverse and inclusive organisation. 

Our Values are:

About the team we are recruiting to

The Pod, part of Coventry City Council, Adult Social Care, aims to build individual, organizational and/or societal capacity for creativity, innovation, compassion and social/eco activism, and each arm of The Pod’s work asserts the importance of cultivating authentic connection with the city, its creatives, eco activists, entrepreneurs, academics, change makers, quiet activists and the underheard. We believe that recovery and regeneration are totally intertwined. We are keen to create conditions in which everyone has voice and can thrive – the city is its people.  

In 2014 to forge a more radical, purposeful, and regenerative connection with the city, The Pod launched its social activism program ‘Food Union’ and its sister program Time Union, this dynamic union of likeminded people were, and remain pivotal in the evolution of The Pod Café - moving it from training kitchen  to its status now as a street facing café situated in a beautiful heritage building in Coventry’s cultural quarter,  and celebrated nationally for its unique take on ‘soil to table’ vegan cuisine and social eating. 

‘The POD is not a like a service it’s more like a social movement’

‘The quiet activism of THE POD is also a deep activism, a unique case of civic care for people, places, land and multi-species, at a time when civic care is aggressively being eroded through calls to austerity, auditing and capital’ Dr Nirmal Puwar, Reader in Sociology, Goldsmiths, University of London.

What is the job role?

Do you love making wholesome plant-based meals, are you great at cooking with fresh ingredients, are you interested in growing food, do you believe in the power of food to connect people and communities?

The Pod Café situated in a beautiful historic building on Far Gosford St, Coventry, has been cited by Guardian readers as being in the top 10 vegan cafes in the UK, and then in The Telegraph this year we were cited as one of best Vegan Restaurants in UK.

We have achieved these accolades because we offer freshly prepared, 100% plant based meals made with local produce sourced from our Food Union allotments and Coventry Retail market and because we demonstrate a deep-rooted connection with and commitment to the city.  

The Pod Café team in collaboration with the Pod’s citywide Food Union and Time Union program sees us innovatively address food poverty and social isolation, building an ethos of food equality, food celebration and union. 

The successful candidate will:  

• co- lead and oversee the co-ordination and delivery of all café operations, from preparing meals to running social media campaigns.  
• develop our ‘soil to table’ ethos through active involvement at our Food Union allotment and emergent kitchen garden sites
• research the local food offer to ensure the ever-evolving café menu is diverse, high quality, original and competitive
• Maintain a customer focussed and efficient café, leading on health and safety 

Having been recognised in 2018 by Guardian Readers as one of the best vegan restaurants in the UK, and then this year by The Telegraph’s food editor as one of the best vegan and vegetarian restaurants to try across the UK in 2022, this is an exciting time to join the team as we move in-to year 6 of being based in our wonderful heritage building.

We are looking to appoint a Casual Café Coordinator, to provide cover (sometimes at very short notice) for annual leave, sickness, busy periods, and for some the events we programme with partners and collaborators.  Due to the nature of the role some weekend work may be required. This is a zero hour post. 

Who are we looking for?

The post holder will be expected to:

• With focus on our ‘Soil to Table’ ethos to prepare from raw ingredients a selection of dishes for up to 50 customers a day that are low cost, wholesome, authentic, flavoursome, that are plant based (vegan) and use fresh and locally sourced ingredients and reflect the cultural diversity of this city.
• To promote/market the service in a variety of innovative ways to sustain current income level and generate new custom and or external funds, this may include partnership events at evenings and/or weekends
• Maintain a customer focussed and efficient café taking the lead on health and safety across the kitchen, café and at the Food Union sites when there are events to always ensure compliance with Food Safety Act 1990
• Be flexible and ready to work across any of our kitchen or garden sites where the preparation of food underpins the engagement activity.
•  to provide cover (sometimes at very short notice) for annual leave, sickness, busy periods, and for some the events we programme with partners and collaborators.

You can find out more about The Pod Café and our wider work here: https://www.coventry.gov.uk/pod-1/pod

Contact the manager of The Pod:  Christine Eade: christine.eade@coventry.gov.uk if you require further information. 

For full details on the application process please read the attached document on our jobs page labelled 'Coventry City Council Application Process'

Interview date: 5th January 2023, this will be located at The Pod and will include aq practical task in the kitchen. 

About Coventry

Coventry has a proud, innovative and creative spirit that throughout its history has seen communities come together to tackle problems and bring about real social change.

We are cutting-edge, challenging, youthful, vibrant and diverse.

At Coventry we are committed to excellence in everything we do. With around 4800 staff from a range of different backgrounds, our aim is to recruit and develop talented people who will focus on our customers, take responsibility, work together and find better ways of doing things.

To deliver the best services to our residents, we need the best people working for us to make a difference to our communities.

If you join us, we will provide a fantastic rewards & benefits package which includes:

• Flexible working arrangements
• Generous annual leave allowance starting at 27 days and rising to 32 days
• Pay progression through multiple increments
• Opportunity for Salary Match
• An outstanding local government pension scheme
• Great opportunities to develop with access to accredited courses.
• Access to an award-winning Occupational Health Service
• Salary Sacrifice Scheme

Coventry City Council