Contractor Wilson Vale gains first healthcare contract

The two-year contract began on March 21 and is a first for company within the healthcare sector. Worth £300,000 in annual turnover, the independent caterers now provides catering services to 500 staff on site, as well as public catering for day patients and visitors at the largest day surgery hospital in Europe. It has appointed chef Paul Gilbert, formerly at the contractor's client site at international law firm Wragge & Co LLP, with the aim 'to take the food offering to new levels'. Under his leadership all meats are slow-cooked on site and cakes are freshly baked daily, with an emphasis on healthy, wholesome food using fresh, seasonal ingredients. Wilson Vale co-founder Andrew Wilson said: "It has been quite a transformation. The food offering has gone from bought-in to real home cooking. We have rebranded the restaurant and we have on board one of our best chefs who has raised standards and created a real sense of pride within the on-site team. "We gained the contract after a long and challenging tender process which involved several site visits to some of our existing catering operations so that our prospective client could experience our food and service levels first-hand. "This is a very welcome and exciting addition to our existing B&I and education portfolio. We apply exactly the same principles across every contract; our focus is on freshly made food, using quality, seasonal ingredients, cooked and served by people who genuinely love what they do." Wilson Vale currently holds 65 contracts, mainly throughout the Midlands and in the north of England. Current annual turnover is £13 million and the company employs 550 staff. Circle was founded to redefine patient experience in the UK by introducing hospitality into healthcare and creating a healing environment in all of their facilities. Provision of high quality, nutritious and fresh food is a key part of the offering to patients. It operates the Nottingham NHS Treatment Centre on behalf of the NHS for all NHS patients. It currently operates five facilities that provide NHS and private treatments, and has plans to build up to 30 hospitals in the coming years.