Healthy eating at new community hub and social care centre

Another milestone has been reached at Elmhurst Short Stay facility in Whitefield with the appointment of a new catering provider.

The healthy on-site meals service is the final piece in the jigsaw of the £1.6 million refurbishment of the 27-bed centre, which also contains a new short-stay facility for people with learning disabilities.

Catering with Pride, a social enterprise, will operate the kitchen and dining room to provide cooked meals that are prepared on the premises. The aim is to provide a quality environment to encourage users’ family and friends to join them at meal times and eat together, as they would at home.

In the summer, the bistro will also be opened to the public to become a community cafe, offering a range of meals, snacks and drinks to the general public.

The aims are to:

• Promote healthy eating by providing freshly made food using locally sourced ingredients
• Create a community hub which promotes inclusion and makes a positive social impact
• Contribute to local employment and economic development by providing work placement, volunteering and apprenticeship opportunities for disabled people and young people

Councillor Rishi Shori, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: "It’s really exciting to see the modernisation of Elmhurst coming to fruition with the appointment of this new catering provider.

“The council has made a commitment to ensuring we get real value for money from local funds and, working with organisations like Catering with Pride, we are able to support local jobs, give young people and those with a learning disability valuable work and volunteering experiences and support local producers and suppliers. Using these fabulous facilities as a community bistro means that Elmhurst will become a thriving community hub.”

ENDS

Press release issued: 28 January 2015.