WILLIAM HEMMING

While working at Neighbourhood, I had to adjust to being significantly more independent than in previous roles, as the small team—typically one front of house and one to two chefs—meant I was often working solo shifts. With only five tables and each allocated a 90-minute slot, efficiency and attention to detail were essential. My responsibilities included checking emails and managing phone bookings before shifts, preparing the restaurant and bar area for service by ensuring cleanliness, placing menus, and turning on heaters. I managed inventory to ensure all drinks and cocktail ingredients were in stock, arranged the front of house rota, changed kegs, performed line cleaning, and restocked fridges and the back bar. I greeted and seated customers, took food and drink orders while providing excellent service, and wrote clear tickets for the kitchen team to follow.

As a team leader, I have learned to mentor others in understanding and maintaining high bar standards. I placed strong emphasis on principles such as bar hygiene and presentation during my shifts. I dedicated significant time to improving the skills of junior staff members. Helping raise their confidence and enabling them to fulfil their roles more effectively gave me a great sense of job satisfaction. My main duties can be summarised as follows: delegating tasks to staff to keep on top of the bar and restaurant floor; cellar quality control, including ensuring that barrels are attached properly and ales are racked and dated correctly; building a rapport with customers; tending the bar whilst handling transactions in a busy environment; cleaning and closing down the bar and ensuring all is done to code; shutting down the glass washers, and maintaining excellent hygiene in the glass washer area; and restocking fridges and facing up, making sure they all look full and presentable

Working in a casino was an amazing experience, and it pushed me completely out of my comfort zone. I saw it as a challenge to adapt and apply my previous skills in a new environment. My primary role was hosting a roulette table, which required juggling multiple tasks at once. These tasks included: building rapport with customers while maintaining the flow of the game; maintaining professionalism and employing empathy when dealing with difficult customers; taking call and neighbour bets before the dealer called 'no more bets'; efficiently placing bets and calculating payouts; and taking responsibility for the end of night count, often handling large sums of cash, with a nightly minimum of £10,000.

I ensured high standards of cleanliness and presentation in the bar area. My responsibilities included serving customers, handling cash transactions, and accurately giving change in a fast-paced environment