Catering Academy boosts healthcare portfolio
National independent contractor Catering Academy has scooped a contract with Notting Hill Housing (NHH) to cater for eight existing extra care services across London, and one new service in Lewisham, which was opened last month.
The three-year contract is worth £2.5m and it is expected to grow over the period.
Catering Academy sealed the deal, having demonstrated it has a similar company ethos to NHH. The client was looking for a catering team that would involve the residents when creating bespoke menus and could meet dietary requirements along with variety and value for money.
To ease the transition for residents across the nine sites, the caterer invested in visual and sensory communication training for its healthcare staff. Working with AGE UK, Catering Academy created a three-hour Sense of Ageing workshop. The team sat down to a three-course meal wearing
equipment that simulated impaired vision, limited movement and deafness to get a sense of the challenges faced by older people.
Founder director Louise Wymer said: "Healthcare is a growth market for Catering Academy, and our recent success demonstrates how we're evolving our service to win client confidence."
Earlier this year, Jason Jones was appointed general manager of healthcare, moving from healthcare development manager at Elior.
On the back of recent successes, Catering Academy has been forging partnerships with organisations such as the National Aged Care Alliance, National Association for Providing of Activities for Older People and AGE UK.
