We are seeking a Part-Time Commercial Cook to lead the kitchen operations at Very Special Kids House in Malvern. This is a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact by preparing nutritious, personalised meals for children and young people with life-limiting conditions.

As a key member of our hospice team, you will be responsible for preparing and coordinating meals that meet the individual dietary needs of children and young people in our care. This includes family-style meals and specialised diets such as texture-modified meals and PEG feeding. You’ll ensure meals are prepared safely, sensitively, and in alignment with each child’s clinical and cultural needs.

Key Responsibilities

Plan and prepare daily menus in line with paediatric dietary guidelines.

Collaborate with nursing and intake teams to understand individual feeding requirements.

Order and manage kitchen supplies to ensure consistent availability.

Maintain high standards of food safety, hygiene, and allergen management.

Provide catering support for small-scale events.

Supervise and support volunteers in the kitchen.

About you

Certificate in Commercial Cookery or equivalent

Experience in healthcare, disability, or aged care settings

Strong knowledge of food safety regulations and dietary guidelines

Ability to prepare meals for diverse cultural and medical needs

Excellent communication and teamwork skills

Empathy and alignment with Very Special Kids guiding principles.

At Very Special Kids, we nurture and foster a culture where our team is empowered, supported and safe through the process of caring for children, young people, and families. Very Special Kids is committed to the safety, wellbeing and inclusion of all children. Our Child Safety Policy, Rights of the Child Charter and Charter of Rights outlines our commitment to child safety and the expectations we have for staff, contractors and volunteers when working with children and young people.

As part of our team, you will have access to education and training to enhance your personal and professional development; expert specialist resources; and the well-being support you need to make a bigger impact to the organisation that supports the children, young people and families in our care.

About Very Special Kids:

At Very Special Kids, we believe that all children and young people have the right to a quality of life, no matter how long or short their life may be. We are a highly respected organisation with circa 100 employees and over 600 volunteers who provide essential, free-of-charge, palliative care services for children and young people living with a life-limiting condition. Very Special Kids provides specialist services for the whole family, including counselling, peer support, bereavement support and respite and end of life care at Victoria’s only hospice for children and young people.

To be successful, you’ll be a strategic thinker and hands-on leader with a passion for delivering exceptional events, a talent for building relationships, and a data-driven mindset that ensures continuous improvement and measurable impact. You will bring:

Proven experience in leading and developing high-performing teams.

Strong background in stakeholder relationship management, change management, conflict resolution, and negotiation.

Demonstrated success in fundraising and event strategy and operations.

Skilled in using data and reporting tools to evaluate performance and drive improvements.

Exceptional organizational and communication skills.

Passionate about creating memorable experiences that make a difference.

Very Special Kids offers its employees a unique and rewarding environment including a supportive team, beautiful setting conveniently located in Malvern close to Glenferrie Road shops. Employee benefits including free onsite parking, not-for-profit salary packaging, health & wellbeing initiatives, and professional development allowance to support career development.

At Very Special Kids, our goal is for our workforce to reflect the diverse community we serve. We continually seek to employ people of any gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, with a disability, Aboriginal Australians and varied cultural backgrounds. If this sounds like you, please take a look at the position description on our website at https://vsk.org.au/who-we-are/careers/.

Applications are open until Friday 7 November 2025. Please include a cover letter, addressing the key selection criteria and an updated copy of your resume via [email protected]. We will review applications as they are received.

Very Special Kids is committed to providing a child-safe environment and requires all staff to have Working with Children Check and Police Record Checks. Clinical Services staff are also required to provide evidence to demonstrate vaccination against COVID-19 and seasonal flu vaccinations.