Chef at The Manor celebrating being finalist at the Scottish Care Home Awards
We are delighted to announce The Manor’s Chef Graham Hogg has been selected as a finalist at this year’s Scottish Care Home Awards.
Nominated for the Nutrition and Eating Well award, which will recognise the individual who demonstrates the ‘whole home approach’ to food and nutrition within the care home, and provides a worthwhile mealtime experience through a varied and innovative menu, understanding the diverse nutritional needs of the residents.
Graham recognises the need to balance an efficient service with being flexible to the needs and wishes of residents, relatives and colleagues. Nothing is too much trouble for Graham, which is particularly noticeable when he finds out someone is not feeling their best and asks if they wish a different meal time, a different location to eat and maybe rustling up a favourite food instead of what is on the menu.
He supports his colleagues to maintain the highest standards within the kitchen and always links the practical tasks to the overall dining experience, saying “a clean kitchen is a must for safety and creativity”. His calm demeanour provides a good role model for others and a confidence the food service will be good.
Graham has a great talent across the range of food provided in The Manor and excels in baking; often making celebratory cakes for birthdays and anniversaries and creating afternoon teas. The home is fortunate enough to have a private dining room and the whole kitchen team put on fantastic events for the residents and their guests, with Graham coordinating these with ease.
In addition, Graham keeps himself up to date on food preparation and development and coaches junior staff to develop themselves in their roles. He shares learning about nutritional needs of older people and contributes to the overall organisational development of menus and their implementation.
Graham regularly goes above and beyond the requirements of his role. When the home’s kitchen main fan became irreparable, there were two days where no hobs or ovens could be used. In addition to modifying the menu so that residents would continue to receive high quality meals, he personally sourced ingredients and additional workforce so that a cold, fresh meal option was as appealing as the normal hot meal.
In his spare time Graham also caters for a charity, using his skills, experience and commitment to give back to the wider community.
Home Manager Anne-Marie McKeich who nominated Graham said, “his personable and caring approach, and pride in his work is infectious and it is a genuine comment that there is nothing but good to say about him and he cares about everyone he works with.”
While Graham’s role is mostly based in the kitchen of The Manor, he is visible to both the staff team and residents and his warm, gentle manner is very welcome to all. He sees his role as not just providing attractive and tasty food; it’s an experience where the food is the highlight but considers how it is enjoyed. He is always courteous to residents and families and his food is of an exceptionally high standard.
The Scottish Care Home Awards will take place on Friday 18th November at the Hilton Hotel in Glasgow.
Good luck Graham!
