A SHORTAGE of pub chefs is being reported by licensees across the Swindon area.

The Bolingbroke Arms has spent the past year advertising for a chef, but to no avail.

Simon Collins, 34, landlord of the pub-restaurant and hotel in Hook, thinks the lack of applicants is due to larger hotels offering more perks.

He said: "Although we pay very good rates, including bonuses, and encourage imagination in the kitchen, we cannot offer free accommodation or private health care."

Mr Collins also puts the shortage down to high employment in the town.

"People can afford to be picky about their working hours in Swindon, and the job of a chef can be considered tiring and anti social," he added.

Sharon Bell, deputy manager of the Spotted Cow pub at Coate, is also looking for a head chef.

She said: "We are always short of chefs and having to muck in ourselves. Although we can offer accommodation and a reasonable salary, there is not much room for imagination."

The position does not allow chefs to be creative in the kitchen because the chain pub, run by Hungry Horse, follows a set menu.

And with a salary of between £14,500 and £15,000, Mrs Bell admits it is not ideal for someone who has a family to support.

"We do not need a professional chef, so the wage does not compare with those of classy hotels. And shift work does not suit everyone," she said.

Lynette Winnall, assistant manager of The Covingham Hen in Covingham, has needed a chef for the past six months.

She said: "The chefs come and go and often only last a month. We only want a grill chef so applicants are often over-qualified. The money is not brilliant and someone has just left to work at Honda because it pays more."

But Swindon College claims there is still demand to train as a chef.

Kerry Bevan, marketing officer at the college, said: "Although our catering courses are not as popular as hairdressing or plumbing at the moment, they are still fully subscribed. Our professional chef course is popular, perhaps due to the Jamie Oliver craze."

Besides running a professional chef course lasting two years, the college also offers shorter courses in food preparation and basic food hygiene.

Based at the North Star campus, the students work in professional kitchens and there is a training restaurant where the public can sample the chefs' creations.