On Monday, November 11, HC-One’s culinary team joined residents, along with representatives from Bidfood and EF-group, for a special Christmas Development Day at Bidfood’s Customer Experience Centre in Slough. This event brought residents and chefs together to collaboratively design HC-One’s festive menu, ensuring it includes seasonal favorites and meets diverse dietary needs.
Getting into the holiday spirit, attendees wore festive hats and jumpers. Four residents took part, including two from HC-One’s Pendleton Court Care Home in Salford, Manchester, and two from Newlands Care Home in Stockport, Cheshire. They joined Chris Bonner, HC-One’s Executive Chef and Nutrition & Hydration Lead, and Mark Meacham, Head of Catering and Housekeeping Support Services, for a day focused on culinary creativity and resident feedback.
The Development Day opened with introductions, followed by a one-minute silence in honor of Remembrance Day. Bidfood, a trusted food supplier to HC-One’s care homes, then presented a selection of dishes to be considered for the Christmas menu. Options included festive starters, main courses, desserts, canapés, and buffet items, with gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian dishes available.
Residents enjoyed a tasting session, sampling the festive foods and sharing their insights with the team. Their feedback will directly shape HC-One’s Christmas menu, making sure it reflects their preferences and needs.
Mark Meacham, Head of Catering and Housekeeping Support Services at HC-One, commented:
“The Christmas Development Day at Bidfood’s Customer Experience Centre was a great success. Thank you to everyone involved, including our food suppliers, Bidfood and EF-group, for providing such excellent and informative sessions.
“Ensuring our residents receive nutritional winter meals to keep their immune system strong and healthy to help fight off any winter illnesses is crucial. The day has provided an opportunity to engage and listen to our residents as well as recognize the hard work and dedication of some of our fantastic colleagues who play such a vital part of our care homes.
“It was a joy to take on board feedback from our residents to be able to incorporate this into our HC-One Christmas Menus this year to create delicious festive dishes that they will enjoy.”
Interested in a catering career with a focus on kind, compassionate care? Explore chef and catering careers at HC-One by visiting our careers website.