Berrywood Hospital is a specialist mental health facility that provides meals across its wards and operates a café for staff and visitors. From the outset, the Berrywood catering team set their sights on gold, working in close partnership with the Food for Life team.
The team at Berrywood increased meals cooked from scratch, introduced more whole grains, fruit, and vegetables, prioritised local suppliers and boosted the use of organic produce.
Staff have gained new skills in scratch cooking and surveys show patient and staff satisfaction with meals has risen significantly. The team have embraced the NHSE Recipe Bank which is a searchable platform of menus which are low carbon, healthy and nutritious.
David Maher, deputy chief executive at Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “We are immensely proud that Berrywood Hospital is the first hospital in the country to achieve the Food for Life Served Here gold award. Recognising the vital connection between nutrition, wellbeing, and recovery, particularly in mental health settings has been at the heart of the reason for going for gold.
“The team have worked incredibly hard to ensure sustainability is at the forefront of all they do, by sourcing more food locally, and prioritising ethical suppliers. This is a landmark moment for our Trust, providing valuable recognition for the hardworking members of staff that provide exceptional food every day and for hospital catering nationally.”
The team at Berrywood are working towards the Green Kitchen Standard, focusing on reducing energy, water, and food waste. They are using Cool Food Pro to track the impact of their work.
Joanne Fitzgerald, catering team at Berrywood Hospital, added: “It has taken a huge amount of work for our small team, from redesigning menus to working closely with new suppliers. But the support from Food for Life gave us the confidence and structure to get there, and seeing how much patients and staff value the food makes it all worthwhile.”