Sargent pepper
Breakfast is cereal and two cups of tea, then it's on to the M25 for the 40-minute drive to work. I might be delayed, so I chill out and listen to my stereo.
I start at 10.30am. The young people get their own breakfast of cereals, fruit juice and toast. They have three meals a day, but the majority like to snack and we get the occasional munchie - someone on steroids, which makes them hungry - so there are always cakes and rolls available.
My first task is to switch on the equipment, including the cooker, dishwasher and radio. I work mostly alone, so Capital Radio keeps me sane. We can have a maximum of 30 for lunch and 20-25 for dinner, including 10-12 staff.
By the end of the year more than 1,000 young people will have passed through the home. We've only just opened, so numbers are small, and it's like cooking for a large family. I offer them a choice and encourage them to eat different foods, which is why we have a theme menu once a week. Today it's African.
On theme day the young people can either opt to help me cook the meal or decorate the table and the dining room. As this is an educational and vocational centre, we help them build up their self-confidence. I'm not just a chef. I get involved with the programmes, like the Self MoT Week when I taught them about nutrition. The centre recently asked me if I'd like to learn to make enamel jewellery so that I can relieve the jewellery teacher. I was delighted. You need to be a team player here.
At 11am I check food deliveries of vegetables and meat. I'm lucky to have a farm shop next door, so all the produce comes in daily. Tonight we're having barbecued chicken with lemon and onion rice from Senegal, Ethiopian lamb stew and West African groundnut stew.
Lunch is at 12.30pm. I do home-made soup and four to five salads with pasta or couscous. If I've got time, I sit with the young people, as I'm very fond of them. It's always possible their cancer might return, but the majority have had treatment. If anything happened, I'd be upset, but I haven't had to deal with this yet. It's quite a change from my last job at the Marie Curie Hospice, where people generally went to die.
After lunch I start the evening's pudding - banana glacé. I try not to stuff the residents full of sweets and chocolate and keep a balance of carbohydrates and protein. I aim to give them five portions of fruit and vegetables a day and always leave a fruit bowl out. They're willing to try vegetarian dishes, but I have to be crafty with vegetables. Soup often has blended vegetables and I slip ingredients such as aubergines into dishes like groundnut stew.
By 4pm the young people are helping with the African meal. Around this time I do the food orders for the next day, plan the menus and type out recipes. I like being in control of everything. When I first arrived I sorted out the light equipment and sourced food suppliers. The students do the clearing and washing up after the evening meal.
I'm home about 7.15pm and relax in a hot bath with aromatherapy oils and a cold beer. If I can be bothered, I cook something quick and nutritional, often a stir-fry or pasta. Then I go out with friends: socialising and clubbing are my main hobbies.
Interview by David Tarpey
