Apprentice Butcher

CROOTS FARM SHOP LTD

BELPER (DE56 4AQ)

Closes in 31 days (Monday 3 August 2026 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 3 July 2026

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Contents

Summary

We are seeking a motivated Apprentice Butcher to join our team. This entry-level position offers a valuable opportunity to develop skills in meat preparation, recipe development and butchery within a professional environment. 

Wage

£12,480 to £19,827.60, depending on your age

National Minimum Wage

Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

Training course
Butcher (level 2)
Hours
30 hours a week, including some weekend working.

30 hours a week

Start date

Tuesday 4 August 2026

Duration

1 year 6 months

Positions available

1

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you'll do at work

This paid apprenticeship is ideal for individuals passionate about food, keen to learn, and interested in pursuing a career in the meat industry. You will:

  • Help set up the butchery counter
  • Serve on the butchery counter
  • Package freshly prepared meat items to a set specification on a daily basis
  • Learning about the products we sell so that you can help advise customers
  • Ensure all health and safety and food hygiene standards are adhered to
  • Cleaning down all equipment used.
  • Work in collaboration with the wider Croots team

The apprentice will learn:

  • Knife skills - including cutting, boning, trimming and mincing of meat
  • Health and safety practices, food safety and hygiene and key legislation
  • Using butchery tools and machinery – including mincing, sausage making, bacon curing, vacuum packing
  • Cutting whole carcasses, in season, from nose to tail.
  • Business profitability, maximising productivity, efficiency and customer care
  • Teamwork and customer care skills
  • Specialist retail shop butchery skills

Where you'll work

FARNAH HOUSE
WIRKSWORTH ROAD
DUFFIELD
BELPER
DE56 4AQ

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

Training provider

MEAT EAST ANGLIA TRADES (IPSWICH) LIMITED

Training course

Butcher (level 2)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Comply with regulations and legislation relevant to their role and business.
  • Maintains and sharpens knives and cutting equipment.
  • Manual handling of carcases or primals through the manufacturing or butchery process.
  • Adhere to the organisational policies and standard operating procedures.
  • Maintain the meat product to the given customer specification and food safety compliance and traceability procedures in the meat supply chain.
  • Support colleagues in delivering the daily workplace requirements.
  • Use technology and applications to support production, sales, and customer service.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement activities which focus on improving sustainability within the business.
  • Communicate with customers and stakeholders to meet their requirements.
  • Process and dispose of waste material.
  • Uses knives and cutting equipment to undertake a range of primary and secondary butchery skills.
  • Serve customers in line with brand standards.
  • Advise customers on the use by dates, storage, preparation, and cooking of meat products.
  • Prepare, produce, and display meat products such as joints, portions, sausages, burgers, value-added products and offer alternative products when required.
  • Plan and prepare for seasonal supply and demand of meat products in the merchandising and promotion of seasonal foods.
  • Provide provenance and heritage product information.
  • Set up and close meat counter displays.
  • Balance the customers’ needs with additional linked products and services such as marinades, and encourage customer loyalty and repeat business.
  • Produce meat to the specific volume, size, and weight to meet the needs of stakeholders.
  • Maximise the saleable yield for the business relating to carcases or primals.
  • Contribute to efficiencies to support the key performance indicators (KPIs) of the business through working to agreed specifications for their role.
  • Adhere to customer specifications and contracts.
  • Contribute to foreign body control and metal detection.
  • Meet key performance indicators within meat processing.
  • Comply with regulations and legislation relevant to their role and business.
  • Maintains and sharpens knives and cutting equipment.
  • Manual handling of carcases or primals through the manufacturing or butchery process.
  • Adhere to the organisational policies and standard operating procedures.
  • Maintain the meat product to the given customer specification and food safety compliance and traceability procedures in the meat supply chain.
  • Support colleagues in delivering the daily workplace requirements.
  • Use technology and applications to support production, sales, and customer service.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement activities which focus on improving sustainability within the business.
  • Communicate with customers and stakeholders to meet their requirements.
  • Process and dispose of waste material.
  • Uses knives and cutting equipment to undertake a range of primary and secondary butchery skills.

Training schedule

This training schedule has not been finalised. Check with this employer if you’ll need to travel to a college or training location for this apprenticeship.

Requirements

Desirable qualifications

GCSE in:

  • English (grade 4/C)
  • Maths (grade 4/C)

Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Organisation skills
  • Presentation skills
  • Team working
  • Initiative

About this employer

We are a family run, food loving farm shop & café based on our family sheep farm in the beautiful Ecclesbourne Valley in Derbyshire and have been established for 18 years.

Our friendly and supportive team are like one big family, in fact we even have a name for ourselves – the Croutons! We pride ourselves on high quality, local meats and customer service and will give you all the relevant training, development and tools to enable you to succeed in your apprenticeship.

https://croots.co.uk/ (opens in new tab)

After this apprenticeship

Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).

This apprenticeship provides an excellent foundation for those looking to build a career in butchery or the wider food industry.

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

MEAT EAST ANGLIA TRADES (IPSWICH) LIMITED

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000040626.

Apply now

Closes in 31 days (Monday 3 August 2026 at 11:59pm)