Relief chef jobs: agency shifts across the UK
Cover shifts at hotels, care homes, contract caterers, schools, stadiums, and event venues. You pick the shifts; we handle PAYE, holiday pay, and the paperwork.
Before you apply: this is shift-based agency work, not a permanent vacancy. There are no guaranteed hours. You choose shifts through the Ubeya app and can decline any of them. Typical UK agency pay for relief chefs in 2026 is £12.71-£30+/hr depending on grade, assignment-dependent, and your rate is confirmed before you accept each shift. Paid monthly through PAYE with weekly Earned Wage Access, holiday pay accrued.
What the work looks like
Relief is the all-rounder's lane. One week you hold a sauce section in a hotel brasserie; the next you run breakfast in a 75-bed care home while the regular chef is off sick. The venue already has the menu, the spec, and the routine. You walk in, take a short handover, and keep the kitchen at its own standard.
Bookings come in every length. Single dinner services, weekend cover, two-week holiday blocks, and the occasional multi-month maternity booking that settles into a fixed weekly pattern. You see what is available in the app and take what fits around your life.
If you only want one kind of shift, the narrower pages are a better read: Chef de Partie for section work, Sous Chef and Head Chef for senior cover.
Pay and hours
Typical UK agency pay for relief chefs in 2026 sits at £12.71-£30+/hr depending on grade. Most all-round relief bookings sit at £15-£24/hr; the wider span covers kitchen porter cover at the bottom and head chef cover at the top. That band is an industry figure drawn from published 2026 rate guides, not a Chefs Bay rate card. The exact rate for every assignment is confirmed in the app before you accept the shift, so the number on payday is the number you agreed to.
Pay runs through PAYE, monthly into your bank account, with weekly Earned Wage Access so you can draw the wages you have already earned before payday. Holiday pay accrues on top. We handle tax and National Insurance. No umbrella companies.
Hours are not guaranteed. Some people on our books work 5-6 days a week across several venues; others take the odd weekend shift. Demand moves with the season, so treat agency shifts as flexible income rather than a fixed wage.
Where the shifts are
Shifts are at client venues across Merseyside, Greater Manchester, the East Midlands, and London, coordinated from our Wallasey, Manchester, Leicester, and London offices.
Relief is the broadest bench we run. Hotel brasseries, 60-cover restaurants, B&I canteens, 75-bed care homes, school kitchens, and stadium match days all book relief cover, usually because the regular chef is sick, on holiday, or on leave.
The wider picture of working with us, including the app, online timesheets, and Academy training, is on our Find Work page.
What you need
How to apply
Email your CV to workwithus@chefsbay.co.uk with "Relief Chef" in the subject line. The button below opens a pre-filled email in your mail app: fill in the gaps, attach your CV, and send.
No mail app on this device? Email us at workwithus@chefsbay.co.uk — include the role name and attach your CV.
No CV ready? The registration form takes about 10 minutes and covers the same ground. Either way, we verify right to work and references before your first shift; most people are approved within 48 hours.
Common questions
Ready to apply?
Send your CV with "Relief Chef" in the subject line, or register online. Vetting usually clears within 48 hours.