Angela Bennett, service manager for Krumbs, tells United Response what it’s like to work at the café, how the recent refurbishment went and why she finds it so rewarding.
How long have you been working at Krumbs?
I took over the role of service manager at Krumbs in January 2009, but had been working here since September in an admin role.
What did you do before?
I worked in the motor trade for 12 years, managing the technicians, handling customer services and dealing with complaints. It wa
s so cut-throat and there was a lot of pressure – often I had to struggle between doing the right thing for the customer and making sure the money came in. I decided I didn’t want to do it anymore and wanted to have a job that felt more worthwhile. In a way, I think coming from this business background where profit is the bottom line, has helped me manage Krumbs, as I’m used to thinking about budgets, being creative and focusing on the best way to make money.
What was involved in the recent refurbishment?
It took about six months of planning before even a lick of paint went on the walls. The people we support here were involved in everything and we had about 5 intense sessions with them where we went over what they wanted to do with the menu, what ideas they had for uniforms and which colour theme they preferred. We then shut down for two weeks. We had the walls repainted, carpet laid in the upstairs training room and office, a new counter built, revamped menus, lighting, tables and chairs and brand new furniture.
What changes do you hope to make to Krumbs to develop its potential as a training café?
In some ways, Krumbs was a victim of its own success – the students who came here trained, but enjoyed the job so much they never felt motivated to leave and find work elsewhere. There was a general lack of focus, both on their part, the staff and the NVQ assessors who would work with them from the college. What this meant was we weren’t fulfilling our brief, which was to prepare students for jobs in the external catering industry. It also meant we were restricted to how many new students we could take on, however we have now started to move people on to new things such as voluntary placements, and – with the recruitment of our own job coach – we intend to move more people on to both voluntary and paid employment. The training centre has moved away from a day service culture, focusing instead on time-based attendance that depends on the needs of the individual. We also factor in an end date, giving all involved a goal to work towards.
Why not check out the Krumbs lighter bites menu for yourself?
