Our People
Vicky O’Connor
Catering Operations Manager
Vicky O’Connor, Catering Operations Manager joined Somerset Larder in 2018 as a Customer Relations Manager, within a year the role grew and with her extensive knowledge of catering and hospitality she stepped into the shoes of Catering Operations Manager. Vicky has worked in the hospitality industry for over 20 years, originally waitressing and doing bar work, this saw her through her university degree in York. After some time travelling and working in Asia, Vicky returned to York and was offered a management position in one of York’s oldest pubs. Living here she built up a successful bar, restaurant and B&B.
After relocating back to Somerset, Vicky went on to work in management roles at Butlins and high street chain Loungers. It was at Loungers that Vicky was offered an operational management role supporting the South West’s regional Lounges. This role gave her the knowledge and experience in managing and improving processes, finance, customer service, food and people.
“Over the years I have experienced many different aspects of business and leadership, all of which have taught me the necessary skills to manage operational performance and strategies. Our management team are some of the most nurturing leaders I have ever worked with, this matters as it enables our team to flourish and thrive.
There is still plenty for me to learn at HPC which is why I love working on the project, I am continuously pushed and challenged to make our operations bigger, better and brighter. I can honestly say that our team are some of the most kind, caring and hardworking I have ever had the pleasure to be around and this makes a difference to our customers experience”
Ian Whitehead
Unit Manager of North and North Annex Café
Ian Whitehead, Unit Manager of North and North Annex Café, is our most long standing Unit Manager at HPC, having started on the project in 2016. Ian was an instrumental part of the Somerset Larder management team in mobilising East Café after the original “C Café“ outgrew its home. Ian has worked in hospitality and catering for over 30 years and after leaving school worked in various roles such as chef, waiter and barman.
In the mid 80’s he was introduced to the world of management when he joined (the then) JD Wetherspoons in North London as a trainee manager and soon became the youngest licencee in the country for the Wetherspoons brand. Being based in North London, at JD Wetherspoon’s HQ, Ian managed one of the busiest and most renowned Wetherspoon establishments of its time.
Ian lives locally and is married to Naomi with a teenage son and is glad to call Somerset home for its beautiful surroundings.
“I ran East Café for 3 years, very much enjoying the fast pace and challenge, however in 2020 I was asked to support the opening of North Annex Café so I left East and moved to North. I now run both areas, alongside my Assistant Unit Manager Lyn Squires, and have a team of over 25 people to lead. The site has grown so much over the last 5 years and I feel lucky to be involved in such an immense project and I hope to be part of it until is completion and possibly beyond”
Jeff Smith
Unit Manager East Café
Jeff Smith, Unit Manager East Cafe worked for Sedgemoor District Council as a Duty Manager for 8 years looking after Sedgemoor Splash in Bridgwater. He then found a new challenge working on a holiday park for Holiday Resort Unity, starting as a Pool Manager in 2009, progressing to Senior Complex Manager in 2020 where he was responsible for 120 staff members. Jeff built a passion for people and food during his time here and engaged his team to deliver consistent speedy service and quality product, in 2017 he was proud to win “Best Waterpark” in the Pool and Spa awards National final. An achievement which demonstrated his drive for excellence.
In 2020 Jeff joined the Somerset Larder team, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience in food and customer service, he now leads a team of 40 in East Café.
Jeff lives in Somerset with his wife and 2 daughters.
“My role varies and that’s what I love! It can be anything from a quick 30 mins in the pot wash helping out to carrying inspections of service and standards within our areas. It really is fast paced and a nice new challenge for me. The team are great and work so hard to ensure we serve the workers the best quality meal as quickly as possible. Its fantastic to be involved in delivering such and important project and something we will remember forever”
Lisa Ward
Unit Manager West & South Café
Lisa Ward, Unit Manager West & South Café has had many varying roles at Somerset Larder since she joined in 2016; breakfast supervisor, chef and chef Manager, but has now settled as Unit Manager in West & South Café. Lisa’s background is as a trained Chef, having worked in chef management roles in school kitchens in and around the local area before joining HPC. Lisa has a unique perspective having worked in East kitchen as Chef Manager, North Café as temporary unit manager, South and West Café as Unit Manager and this shows in her drive, commitment and passion for people, process and attention to detail.
Lisa lives locally with her Husband and makes it a family affair at HPC, having her Son working his way up the management ladder as a Catering Supervisor at Somerset Larder.
“Somerset Larder has given me the opportunity to spread my wings, grow and progress. Every day is different and can be challenging, but I am proud to stand beside my team and see many of them blossom in their roles. I have seen so much change over the past 5 years and have seen our team grow into a resilient, positive and flexible workforce, this has been extremely rewarding as a manager on the project”
Karen Hill
Franchise Service Manager
Karen Hill, Franchise Service Manager, joined Somerset Larder as a Retail Manager in 2017 when the first retail shop was launched in East Café. The next 4 years has seen many advancements in our retail areas including the roll out of Retail across all 4 welfare areas and the introduction of the Lottery across HPC.
Karen’s retail experience dates back to 2013, having worked her way up and into various roles for high street chain Boots. This saw her embed brand standards and practices in merchandising, store planning, training and healthcare.
Nourishing the community runs deep within Karen’s core, having also worked within the hospitality industry where she ran her own pub in Stogursey. One of her proudest moments was setting up a charity event that grew and spread wings within the village and surrounding areas for many years, raising thousands for The Air Ambulance, Nether Stowey Fire Brigade & Burnham Lifeboat.
“What I love most about my role at Somerset Larder is that every day is different. With new shops, new people and new projects you feel the stretch, which requires resilience, influence and leadership. I find that this has been particularly nurturing both personally and professionally for me and truly believe this is not something I would have been able to cultivate outside of a project like HPC”
Aaron Mogg
Chef Manager East Café
Aaron Mogg, Chef Manager East Café has worked in every kitchen at HPC since he joined in March 2017 progressing into his Chef Manager role in 2019. Having previously worked in hotels and restaurants HPC was something very different. Aaron’s passion of food is something that runs in the family, he was first introduced to the industry through the family business, this gave him the drive to further his career achieving multiple professional cookery, food , drink and service qualifications.
Working along other talented chefs in the industry and at prestigious establishments across Somerset, Aaron flourished with his skills and extensive knowledge of food and kitchen management, when he joined Somerset Larder it was clear to see that he had potential and was soon put on a career development path to becoming Chef Manager.
“Having worked in the hospitality industry for a number of years I am very grateful to be in my role at HPC, the hospitality trade has taken such a big blow in the last year as a result of Covid which is so sad to see, yet HPC has given me the security and momentum to continue to thrive.
My role involves overseeing half of the sites kitchen teams daily operations, auditing, development, mentoring all the way through to being a member of the team in the kitchens to ensure food is met to the standards and expectations of the project and our customers”