Chris Hook

Free From Director

My role centres around managing the Warburtons Gluten Free commercial team. My role means that I have overall responsibility to deliver sustained growth and profit, setting the strategy for the Free From business, and driving innovation. I engage with external and internal stakeholders within my role, identifying and sharing new opportunities for our gluten free range. I also seek out opportunities for our gluten free range, which includes exporting our products to retail customers in new territories such as Dubai and Australia. I love the variety of my role – no day is the same. I also love that we are able to bring enjoyment and satisfaction to our consumers who follow a restricted diet with our Warburtons Gluten Free range. My  highlight from my 12 years at Warburtons – growing the Warburtons Gluten Free brand from very humble beginnings to the number 1 position in gluten free bread that it is now.

Andrew Oliver

Projects Manager Gluten Free

I have worked at Warburtons for 22 years, working on all things gluten free from ingredients to machinery, process and people. As a baker, I feel very proud to have worked for Warburtons for 22 years now, In return for my hard work and dedication, Warburtons have invested in my development and given me so many opportunities to grow over the years - they really are a great employer! My highlight during those 22 years has to be when we purchased the Gluten Free site back in 2009 and I moved from my current role in Newburn bakery to lead the gluten free site. From this time, I have either managed or been heavily involved in all recipes and processes and machines that have been introduced to gluten free. It's been really challenging however also very rewarding seeing the fruits of our hard work.

Stephen McCafferty

Distribution Site Lead

I have worked at Warburtons just short of 28 years. In my role, I am responsible for a team of 140, ensuring a safe working environment for management, warehouse and driver operations teams who collaborate to despatch, load and deliver between 160K – 220K units of product to over 1,000 customers daily! Our Free From operation is positively thriving and it’s great to be part of this success as my role creates opportunity to engage with the manufacturing teams and support the safe and efficient movement of the product - not only here but abroad too. The people I work with are what gets me out of bed in the morning, I have had fantastic opportunities throughout my career to work with so many diverse individuals up and down the country, sharing best practice and taking as much as I can from the experiences to help me grow as a leader. I've had lots of highlights over the years, but have really enjoyed the customer contact every day for 12 years!

Kerri Marney

Technical Manager

I have been at Warburtons for 10 ½ years. As Technical & Compliance Manager, I am responsible for food safety, hygiene and quality. Day to day, we carry out product assessment to ensure the products we produce are of the highest quality - a very important task! Behind the scenes, we are always planning our next move! Whether that be conducting innovation trials to keep us fresh on the market, or reviewing how we can improve our current offerings to make sure they are unbeatable! My favourite thing about working at Warburtons has to be the people. I moved from Northern Ireland to join Warburtons and the people have made it a home from home for me. It is one big work family! It's been amazing to be part of our Gluten Free business from the very beginning. Looking back to where we started and where we are now is a really rewarding feeling- being part of that growth and success is incredible!

Michael Ley

Category Development Lead

Within my role as Category Development Lead, I am responsible for helping retailers to range the very best of Free From Bakery that will delight their shoppers who follow restrictive diets. I recently moved into my Category Development role for Free From where I get to spend everyday having meaningful conversations with retailers, that help make the Free From aisle even more exciting and engaging for their shoppers. What I love most about working at Warburtons is our obsession with quality. Being in an environment where above all else, everyone cares that the products we make and everything we do is the best it can be, is a great place to go to work everyday. I was only supposed to be at the business for 2 weeks to help with some admin, but 5 and a half years later I haven’t looked back!

Michael Smith

Operations Shift Manager

I co-manage the Gluten Free manufacturing department, which involves collaborating with numerous teams across the business to create and execute our manufacturing strategy. My team focuses on everything from the delivery of raw materials into site, through to creating and packing a great finished product for consumers. The best thing about my role is being able to work with a team that are really passionate about the product and are driven to continually improve the way we do, what we do! There have been many highlights over my 6 years at Warburtons from launching our brilliant Rolls products to seeing the overall growth of gluten free - what a journey so far!

Fraser Stewart

Baking Technology Manager

I've been working with Warburtons for just over a year now, bringing with me over 35 years of baking industry experience. My current role centers around working to drive and deliver the quality strategy for our Gluten Free business. I am responsible for quality improvements across our Gluten Free range, which includes anything from ingredients to processing and finally products. Working at Warburtons feels like a real family business and I have a great part in helping Gluten Free achieve the highest quality. What's more, every day is different, which also means every day is also great!

Catherine Swetnam

Ingredients Buyer

I have been working at Waburtons since 2018 in various roles within the procurement department. My current role as Ingredients Buyer involves the sourcing and procurement of all of our gluten free ingredients, with the aim of bringing in the highest quality ingredients and managing continuity of supply so we can always have the best possible product on shelf for our customers. Having the opportunity to work more closely with the Gluten free team since 2022 has provided me with great insight into this unique bakery sector. The role is exciting and diverse allowing me to engage with people from all over the business, and externally with a diverse range of national and global suppliers. I have many highlights from working here, being a part of the biggest year ever for Gluten Free was rather special and I look forward to being a part of the continued success! I love being a part of the Warburtons team (or family!), the people you get to work with make it a special place to be. The genuine care and compassion everyone has for the products, and people that make them, continues to make me feel privileged that I get work here too.

Colin Franklin

Site Lead

I have been with Warburtons for over 13 years, with overall responsibility for site operations and manufacture of our gluten free products from ensuring safety at site to the quality of our products. Gluten Free manufacturing is an exciting place to be here at Warburtons. It's exciting to look to the future, where we will always strive to deliver the best quality product and service to all our customers and consumers alike. I love the challenges that arise daily, no day is the same which is very rewarding. I also love working with family values underpinning all we do. The highlight of my 13 years has been being part of Gluten Free when we became brand leaders and I look forward to this growing and growing.

Chris Dodd

Assistant Engineering Manager

My role involves managing the engineering department for our Gluten Free business, to provide safe and reliable equipment for our manufacturing processes. Within my role, I have been able to watch the Gluten Free business grow over the last 7 years, from Newburn Bakehouse with a very manual production process producing relatively small volumes into a bigger, more structured process running around the clock. I love the huge variety of my role, no two days are the same, as well as the people I work with. I look forward to watching Gluten Free continue to grow.