Hospital in resort to stop preparing fresh meals on site

The trade union Unite says from February food will be prepared at York Hospital, then chilled and driven to Bridlington Hospital, more than an hour’s drive away, where it will be reheated. The dining room for staff and up to 110 patients using the hospital will only open two hours a day during the week and will close at weekends.

Unite said it represented a further downgrading of services at the hospital, which has had a controversial history of cutbacks, including the transfer of the cardiac monitoring unit, acute medical wards and maternity services to Scarborough in 2008.

The Campaign for Better Hospital Food, which is backed by several high-profile chefs, including Loyd Grossman and Albert Roux, has called for minimum standards for hospital food, and says quality is getting worse because of the squeeze on budgets.

Co-ordinator Alex Jackson said: “Every year, more and more hospital kitchens are closed in the mistaken belief that this will save the NHS money. In fact the reverse is true because freshly cooked hospital meals are often more popular with patients, meaning less food is wasted and patients receive the nourishment they need to recover.

“Closing the dining room almost all of the time will also mean that many staff, visitors and patients will now have little choice but to buy food from hospital vending machines and trolleys, which often only provide unhealthy junk food and sugary drinks.” Margaret Peel, chairman of the hospital’s League of Friends, said it was “sad”, adding: “The food served on site is a lot fresher and more beneficial for patients.”

Unite said the plans to cut the number of catering assistants from 11 to three, with only one of the six chefs required, was “devastating news for our members and their families.”

Regional officer Terry Cunliffe said York Foundation Trust “seems intent on axing more services and jobs at Bridlington.”

He added: “Management has said that it will try to redeploy staff, but redundancies are on the cards which Unite will oppose very strongly.”

York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said they had decided to move to cook-chill at Bridlington, as they did at York Hospital, to reduce costs.

A statement said some redundancies “may be unavoidable.” It added: “The quality of our food is of utmost importance to us. By preparing and serving food in this manner we can offer a more efficient service whilst still providing nutritious, hot and tasty food.”