The prestigious awards are now open to individuals, teams, companies and organisations including contract caterers operating in a public sector environment. Nominations will close on Friday 31st January 2025.
There are 17 award categories open for nomination as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award and Armed Forces Caterer of the Year Award that will be presented on the night.
New for 2025, a Prison Catering Award has been created by the organisers. Open to individuals or teams working directly in state male and female prisons, young offender institutes and those in contracted out operations this award seeks to recognise the unsung work of caterers in this sector.
Judges are looking for those who have overcome operational challenges, innovated with ingredients and menus, achieved training success for team members or prisoners working alongside them, sought feedback on the food served and responded.
Public Sector Catering Award categories include:
Armed Forces Caterer of the Year Award (not open for nominations): Commands are to encourage units to identify and nominate a military caterer who has made an outstanding contribution to morale through the delivery of catering services in 2024.
Care Catering Award: Nominations are sought for an individual, team, or organisation involved in the delivery of resident mealtimes in a care setting who has significantly improved catering services for clients and residents.
Catering College Award: The training and education of the next generation of chefs is largely provided in a public sector funded environment and this award seeks to single out exceptional service in this area.
Catering Manager of the Year Award: Nominees for Catering Manager of the Year can work for an in-house or outsourced organisation, at an individual site or across a number of locations.
Chef of the Year Award: This award recognises the chef who provides the highest standards of professionalism for food quality and innovation in a public sector catering environment, whether in-house or for an outsourced organisation.
Contract Caterer of the Year Award: This is the award for the top-performing company (Ltd or PLC) supplying outsourced catering and support services to the public sector in either a specific area or across the whole sector.
Education Catering Award: Nominations are invited for catering professionals, teams and organisations working in establishments within the education sector for this award, which recognises excellence in the provision of foodservice for schools and academies in the state sector.
Health and Nutrition Award: This award looks to recognise good practice in the delivery of a clear health and nutrition strategy within a specific part or across the entire public sector.
Hospital Catering Award: All catering professionals and teams working in establishments within the National Health Service are eligible for this award whether they work for an outsourced organisation or an in-house operation.
Innovation Award: In this category judges are looking for a product or service innovation that has dramatically changed an operator’s catering strategy.
Marketing Award: Judges are looking for a marketing initiative or sustained campaign by an individual, team, or organisation working for an outsourced or in-house operation that has proved successful and exceeded expectations.
Prison Catering Award (New for 2025): Open to individuals or teams working directly in state male and female prisons, young offender institutes, and those in contracted out operations, this award seeks to recognise the unsung work of caterers in this sector.
Special Contribution Award: This will be awarded to an organisation, team or individual who, although not directly involved in providing catering services to the industry, have performed a role that has had a significant influence on the provision of services in one or more areas of the public sector.
Sustainability Award: This award aims to recognise the company or organisation that has best integrated social, economic and environmental concerns into its business.
Team of the Year Award: This award recognises the amazing results that can be achieved by getting a group of individuals working to collective aims and objectives.
Training and Apprenticeship Award: This award aims to recognise the company, organisation or individual that has shown the most outstanding commitment to developing skills and abilities, particularly among young or disadvantaged people.
University Catering Award: Judges are looking for an individual, team, or organisation that has had a major influence on the provision of foodservice to students and/or the development of commercial catering operations in a university.
Unsung Hero: Within every organisation there is always at least one individual, or perhaps a team, that goes beyond what is simply expected and supports their customers, colleagues, or the wider community in exceptional ways.
Lifetime Achievement Award (not open for nominations): The Public Sector Catering Lifetime Achievement Award is in the gift of the judges, who have the opportunity to acknowledge outstanding, long-term and dedicated contribution to the industry.
Please ensure you have read the entry criteria thoroughly and answered the questions related to the award you’d like to enter, within the 500-1,000 word limit.
It is this document that will convince the judges of their worthiness to win the award. You can also include supporting material such as testimonials, menus, CVs, photos etc. Nominate here.