Saltwater Kitchen welcomes new head chef and trainees

Mission Australia’s Saltwater Kitchen has welcomed a new Head Chef, Leigh Harding, who is sharing 30 years’ worth of culinary knowledge with the Darwin social enterprises’s latest intake of trainees.

The catering business supplies fresh, healthy food to school students, local businesses and government departments while providing practical training and work experience to local disadvantaged job seekers.

Head chef Leigh has worked in the hospitality industry for three decades, including six years teaching Commercial Cookery at Charles Darwin University. He also has experience delivering training to remote Aboriginal communities.

The 17 new trainee recruits began their pre-employment training this week in preparation for the start of the school year next Tuesday.

“We’ve got a great crew on board this year,” said Mission Australia Enterprise Development Manager Lawson Broad. “The trainees are all looking forward to putting their new skills into action next week.”

Saltwater Kitchen currently caters for Sanderson Middle School, Rosebery Middle School, Rosebery Primary School and Millner Primary School and recently moved into Nightcliff Middle School. The training kitchen at Nightcliff has proved to be the ideal base for Saltwater Kitchen’s high-quality catering business.

Mission Australia has also recruited three more Canteen Managers to Saltwater Kitchen, given the growing numbers of schools the social enterprise is catering to.

Saltwater Kitchen is operated by Mission Australia as part of the Changing Places Innovation Fund, which is deliverd by the Department of Education Employment and Workplace Relations.