Bar/Café manager

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a sufficient number of applications

• Operational management— Manage all bar and front‑of‑house hospitality operations, ensuring smooth service across daily trade, ticketed events and private hires.

• Revenue and margin management — Own P&L for the bar; drive sales, control costs, manage pricing and promotions to meet monthly and annual targets.

• Stock and supplier management — Oversee purchasing, stock control, inventory systems, and supplier relationships to minimise waste and optimise margins.

• Team management — Recruit, train, rota and develop bar and casual staff; create a positive, inclusive culture and ensure high standards of service.

• Customer experience — Deliver consistently excellent customer service; handle customer feedback and complaints professionally and promptly.

• Compliance and safety — Ensure licensing, food safety, health & safety and cash handling procedures are followed; maintain accurate records and incident logs.

• Event delivery — Work closely with programming and venue hire teams to plan and deliver hospitality for events, rehearsals and private hires; adapt service models for different audiences.

• Youth engagement — Embed Contact’s youth‑led approach into hospitality activity, creating opportunities for young people to be involved in front‑of‑house roles, training and enterprise.

• Reporting and systems — Maintain sales, stock and cash reports; use EPOS and booking data to forecast demand and inform purchasing and staffing.

• Continuous improvement — Identify and implement operational efficiencies, menu and offer development, and sustainability initiatives.

• Represent Contact to external bodies, networks, organisations and individuals as required.

• Attend regular organisational meetings and team meetings as required

• To be familiar with the work being presented by Contact by attending workshops, read throughs, rehearsals and performances where appropriate.

• Take a role in the integration of young people into company activity, working directly with young people as decision-makers and partners.

• Keep up to date with and work within Contact’s policies, particularly those relating to the Safeguarding of Young People and the Equal Opportunities Policy.

• Engage actively in Contact’s development of good practice with regard to cultural diversity in the arts and to be a champion of diversity within the company and the wider field.

• Follow Contact’s Health & Safety policy, undertaking duties as required and ensure reasonable care is taken to maintain a healthy and safe place for public and staff.

• Actively commit to Contact’s Equal Opportunities policy and Contact’s Safeguarding of Young People policy.

• Actively commit to Contact’s anti-racism working practices

• Undertake any other duties that may be reasonably required in connection with the position.

• To provide inspirational and supportive leadership for your direct reports & team, ensuring that they remain highly motivated and empowered to develop within their roles.

• Manage, control and report on all budgets relating to your team/area, delegating budgetary authority where appropriate.

• To advise and report regularly on activity as required by the Senior Leadership Team, Board and sub-boards, supplying any data required to meet funder reporting requirements.

• To provide mentoring and support to young people and on occasions deliver training/workshops in areas relevant to your job role.

• In line with Contact’s governance model, pro-actively engage young people in decision-making through consultations, young people’s panels and other mechanisms relevant to your job role.

• To manage all personal data in line with the General Data Protection Regulations, using the Spektrix database as directed.

• Proven experience managing bar or hospitality operations in a busy venue, events or hospitality setting.

• Strong commercial awareness with experience of P&L ownership, cost control and margin improvement.

• Excellent people management skills; experience recruiting, training and leading small teams.

• Good knowledge of licensing, food safety and health & safety requirements.

• Strong customer service focus with experience handling complaints and complex event delivery.

• Competent with EPOS systems, stock control and basic financial reporting.

• Commitment to Contact’s mission and to creating inclusive, youth‑led opportunities.
  

• Experience working in arts, cultural or community venues.

• Experience of developing youth training or enterprise programmes.

• Knowledge of sustainable hospitality practices and local supplier networks.

• Basic barista or mixology qualifications.