Why James Finn is in the running for Winterhalter KP of the Year

At the University of Edinburgh, kitchen porter James Finn has gone from a school leaver with no kitchen experience to the man his head chef calls one of his best ever recruits.

Four years on, the 23-year-old has been nominated for Winterhalter Kitchen Porter of the Year by Neil Mackenzie, head chef at the University of Edinburgh - an operation that caters across more than 120 buildings.

"We've managed to turn him around into the sort of young professional he is now," Neil says. "But that's been testament to him."

Why Neil nominated him

Neil's reasoning is simple: people who do a great job in the KP section are rarely told so.

"It's good to give recognition," he says. "Reward and recognition for a lot of young people nowadays is definitely what's needed, to give them a bit of a personal profile and just to say, you actually do a really, really good job."

In the nomination itself, he went further.

"James is an exceptional kitchen porter whose contribution is fundamental to the success of our kitchen," Neil wrote. "His work ethic, consistency, and attitude set an example not only for other porters, but for the entire brigade."

"James consistently goes above and beyond his duties - anticipating what the kitchen needs, supporting the chefs without being asked, and ensuring standards never slip, no matter the pressure. He treats the kitchen as if it were his own. James doesn't just do the job well; he elevates the entire team around him."

James came in as raw talent and has been with the team for four years, working 7am until 2.30pm, Monday to Friday, with his weekends kept free. That matters to him, as he is an avid Hibernian supporter, and football outside of work is his passion.

"He's probably one of my best recruits," Neil says. "Recruiting is very difficult in this world. But sometimes it's good to take a raw talent and be able to work with them, and help him progress."

"A bit of a beast of a place"

The operation James is part of is a serious one, with a production kitchen that can prepare for 200 covers and event spaces that include Old College and the McEwan Hall, two of Edinburgh's landmark buildings.

"It can be a bit of a beast of a place," Neil says.

"We make all of our own sandwiches, all of our own cakes, all of our own breakfast and food platters. And then we've got all the ad hoc events."

There are six major event spaces taking up to 300 people each, running buffets, grazing bowls and sit-down dinners. A dinner for 200 will usually have two kitchen porters on it, with agency staff brought in as needed. James is one of a team of four: he covers the mornings, another covers evenings, and two more work the dinner events.

A day in the KP section

James joined straight out of school and still remembers his first shift.

"It went alright," he says. "I got shown around by the chefs, and the head KP taught me how to put things away and keep the kitchen clean and tidy. I got faster. It took time, but we got there.

"We clock in, and then there's a wee changing room, so we get ourselves into a proper uniform. And then there's deliveries that come in - trucks and vans, so it all comes in on a cage."

Those deliveries cover everything the kitchen runs on, from blue roll and dishwashing chemicals to the milk and fridge stock. "I put all that away neatly, make sure things are in the right order," he says.

"Occasionally I'll come in and there's a pile of dishes left from the night before, so I'll crack on with that. Sometimes I come in and there's nothing there, so I'll find stuff to do in the kitchen - make sure the bins have all got black bags and everything's where it should be."

"It starts quiet, and then it eventually starts getting busy as the day goes on," he says.

Asked what the hardest part of the job is, James says: "Getting organised." And what he enjoys after four years: "People. Meeting new people."

More than the washing up

Neil's nomination spells out how much of the kitchen quietly depends on him.

"His consistency allows chefs to focus entirely on service and food quality, knowing the foundations of the kitchen are always secure," Neil wrote. "He willingly stays late to reset the kitchen, steps up during staff shortages without hesitation, and proactively supports prep and service when pressure is high."

Equipment is part of it too: James keeps the kit clean and ready, flags problems early, and resets the section at the end of every shift so the next day starts clean.

From school leaver to qualified chef

The university has built something around him, too. Neil got him signed up to a Modern Apprenticeship through Skills Development Scotland, with one of the sous chefs supporting him through the course.

"I think it's really important that people are given workplace qualifications," Neil says. "We try to enhance their personal skills, to give them better life skills."

For James, that meant learning to cook from scratch. "I've done a wee bit of chef training," he says. "A woman was coming in and she was showing me how to cook, so we started cooking small meals - vegetables and soup. I was making soup, and pasta."

"When I first started there, I never knew how to cook at all. That's something I've learned."

He came out of it technically qualified as a chef. But he has found where he is happiest, and it is not on the section. "I think he enjoys just being more hands-on, less pressure, knowing what you need to do," Neil says.

That does not mean standing still. His annual review had finished barely an hour before this interview, and the plan is to get him supporting more in the kitchen, making sandwiches and taking on other jobs.

Head down when it's busy

Ask Neil how James works and the answer says as much about the person.

"When it's busy, his head's down and he just grafts away," he says. "And then when it gets quieter, he likes to have a laugh with people, and to help and support the other guys, the front of house teams, the delivery drivers. He's got a good relationship with his co-workers."

New starters pick up the standards and the culture of the kitchen by working alongside him - and, as Neil put it in the nomination, "he doesn't seek recognition, but earns respect naturally through his consistency and attitude".

Why recognition matters

Neil has worked with a lot of kitchen porters, and he is clear about where they sit in the team.

"The kitchen porter is the backbone of the operation," he says. "A great kitchen porter is worth their weight in salt. Generally they're the ones who know everything, because they stand there watching. They know what's required and when it's required.

"There's a good camaraderie between kitchen porters and chefs. They don't want to step into that chef position, but they'll help put things on plates, they'll do food preparation. There's such a support link with the operation."

That, for him, is why an award aimed squarely at KPs is worth having. "It gives people motivation, because they're the unsung hero of the kitchen," he says.

What it would mean

Asked what winning the award would mean to him, James's answer is a single word: "Amazing."

"When I told James a couple of weeks back that we'd put him forward," Neil says, "I don't think I've ever seen such a big smile on anyone's face."

Why James is a strong nominee

What makes James Finn a convincing contender for Winterhalter KP of the Year is not one headline moment. It is four years of turning up at 7am to a demanding operation and making sure it can function - deliveries away, dishwasher clear, kitchen ready before anyone else needs it to be.

He joined with no experience, learned the job, then earned a chef qualification on top of it. He runs the morning section on his own, steps up when the kitchen is short, and is liked enough that chefs, front of house and delivery drivers all rate working with him.

Or, as his head chef put it in the nomination: "The kitchen simply does not run as smoothly without his presence."