During the summer, we celebrated the outstanding talent and culinary brilliance throughout Mellors with our annual event, the Golden Whisk award.

The objective of the Golden Whisk award is to acknowledge and reward skilled individuals within Mellors units across the North of England and Midlands.

Following an extremely competitive shortlisting process with over 138 entries, four finalists made it through to the penultimate stage – battling it out in a live cook off, against the clock.

Our four finalists included Anisha Issop from Sharples High School, Ray Dennis from Dean Trust Ardwick, Patrick Joyce from Royds Hall High School and Emma Sheard from Kirkleatham Hall Special School.

Sponsored by Unilever UK, this prestigious competition tasked entrants to design and create a dish which utalised leftover food, likely destined for waste and something that could be served in any Mellors kitchen. According to statistics, in the UK 9.5 million tonnes of food is discarded as waste each year and we want to change that!

This years’ theme, ‘waste not, want not’ challenged applicants to be more environmentally friendly by giving their food leftovers a new lease of life!

Do you have what it takes to enter next years Golden Whisk award? Could you be our 2024 winner? Stay tuned for more updates…

The legwarmers have been stashed away, the hairspray cans are finally taking a breather, and the Rubik’s Cubes have been unscrambled – Mellors Autumn Party 2023 (80’s theme) has officially been wrapped, leaving a trail of amazing neon memories and unforgettable dance moves!

On Friday 10th November, Lancashire Manor Hotel hosted the annual Mellors Autumn Party, with more than 180 of our amazing Catering Managers coming together for an evening of celebration.

This yearly event is an evening of celebration and thanks to our brilliant Catering Managers, an opportunity to get together with old friends and new, and raise some money for our wonderful nominated charity – Zoë’s Place!

Across our ever popular charity raffle and attendees generously donating their room deposits upon check-out, we managed to raise a whopping £2,262! BIG thank you to all who donated.

Also presented during the evening were awards for the Golden Whisk, Small Unit of the Year, Large Unit of the Year and the Bill Kelly Special Recognition Award. Congratulations to…

• Anisha from Sharples High School, Bolton – Golden Whisk Award 2023
• Barkerend Primary School – Small Unit of the Year
• Winstanley College – Large Unit of the Year
• Emma Labbett-Cadden – Bill Kelly Special Recognition Award

Here’s some of our favourite snaps and highlights from the night!

On Monday 4^th September 2023 Mellors Catering Services proudly sponsored and served up a very special lunch for over 850 delegates at Aston Community Education Trust first whole inset event. 

Hosted at Magna Science and Adventure Centre in Rotherham, which was a former Templeborough steelworks, set the scene for an immersive day of education, learning, team-work, reflections and future visions. 

The education trust was founded in 2013 and the event was a fantastic opportunity for all staff across the 23 trust schools to come together ahead of the new academic year.

Andrew Walker, Director of Operations at Mellors said

“It was a pleasure and a privilege to support such a fantastic event, showcasing a glimpse of Mellors amazing food.

“For Mellors, the key is in the detail. We’re committed to only using locally sourced, fresh and quality ingredients in our recipes to create flavours that tickle your taste buds! 

“I’m so proud of what the team has achieved, delivering superb food and serving over 850 people is no mean feat.  Thank you to Aston Community Education Trust for this opportunity to showcase our food.”

Mellors are the current school food catering provider at Shirebrook Academy, Mansfield which is part of the Aston Community Education Trust. Well done Team Mellors!

Stuart Dale, Executive Development Chef and Mellors very own culinary genius wowed the crowd as he took to the stage at the StrEAT Food Award Finals.

The prestigious event hosted at none other than London’s iconic Big Penny, where a delightful fusion of flavours captivated palates of food enthusiasts from around the UK.

The StrEAT Food Awards searches for the UK’s most creative street food chef from the workplace and event catering sectors. This unique competition invites caterers, chefs, food/menu development chefs and unit managers from contract caterers and staff restaurants to enter and present their street food innovations to the industry.

The Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki is a beloved Japanese delicacy, known for its layers of savory goodness, hearty toppings, and umami-packed sauces.

Stuart said,

“Japan left a mark on my culinary soul. The passion and precision that I witnessed during my trip were truly inspiring. The Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki encapsulates the heart and soul of Japanese street food, and I’m excited to offer it as a tribute to the incredible flavours I encountered.”

Danielle Watkins, Head of Nutrition and Food Development at Mellors said,

“Stuarts passion for food remains a testament to his unwavering commitment to food innovation and creativity. Despite not securing the top spot, we’re all incredibly proud of what Stuart has achieved.

“At Mellors, we constantly strive to launch new and exciting flavours which inspire and tingle tastebuds! We like to immerse our customers into a world of different flavours.”

Stuart added, “Participating in the StrEAT Food Awards has been an incredible journey. It was amazing to be among such talented chefs who share an equal love for food.”

In 2022, Stuart was crowned winner of “Meat-Free Dish of the Year Award” at the StrEAT Food Awards, cooking up an incredible South American-style Quorn arepa.

Well done Stuart, you have done Mellors proud!

From Pasture to Palate! The Mellors Team Visit Little Town Dairy, in the Heart of the Ribble Valley

Little Town Dairy originally dates back to the early 1960’s when Eileen and Matt moved to Little Town Farm, with just 7 cows. Now they are a 3rd generation farm, seeing the fruits of their labour over the years, with a herd of over 200 happy Holstein Friesian milking cows.

Sustainability is at the heart of the operation at Little Town Dairy, priding themselves by using only the freshest, ingredients with the majority of milk used coming from the herd just across the farmyard. With few food miles, fully recyclable packaging – Little Town Dairy are avid eco-warriors! It’s a genuine farm-to-table story where every spoonful is a taste of their passion for quality.

With a wide range of delicious flavours and varieties including “smooth and creamy”, “Greek Style Yogurt”, “Dinkies” for children plus much more. Yogurt is packed full of nutrients for children, beneficial for children’s gastrointestinal health and bone health and development, especially as they are growing. Yogurt is rich in calcium, vitamins B6 and B12, riboflavin, potassium and magnesium.

The Little Town Dairy team said,

“We are delighted to work closely with our valued customers to provide delicious yogurts for their customers to enjoy!”

Mellors are proud to serve such a local and quality product to our customers, which aligns with many of our company values, Little Town Dairy really are the cream of the yogurt crop!

Mellors were delighted to sponsor the Ironstone Awards, an event that celebrates the remarkable skills and accomplishments of the inspiring pupils from all 6 Ironstone Academy Trust schools.

The event which had been put on hold for the last few years, but were thrilled and excited to reinstate this fantastic event to celebrate student achievements.

Mellors sponsored ‘The Friendship & Supporting Others’ award, which recognises the pivotal role that friendship and support play in the lives of students and the overall development of a nurturing educational environment.

During the event, attendees were treated to a delightful performance by a local folk singer, Richard Grainger, whose heartfelt songs beautifully depicted the essence of Teesside and the local area. His songs nostalgically reminisced about the rich history of mining and steel works, capturing the spirit of the good old days in Teesside.

Tony Trainer, CEO and Neil Eastwood, North East Operations Manager were in attendance and thoroughly enjoyed the performance, joining in for a fantastic sing-along to one of Richard Grainger’s iconic tunes, “Roll River, Flow River, Roll Down”. The joyous collaboration added a memorable touch to the evening, reinforcing the sense of community and togetherness at the Ironstone Awards.

Neil said,

“It was an absolute pleasure to sponsor the ‘The Friendship & Supporting Others Award’ and witness the incredible achievements of these young talents.”

Mellors Catering Services remains committed to supporting educational initiatives and events that empower and recognise the achievements of young individuals.

Executive Development Chef, John Connolly has been trailing a new added value service, offering unit-based staff the opportunity to learn and develop their culinary skills in a 1 day course.

Throughout the summer, John has been travelling across the North of England and visiting some lucky Mellors units to deliver this foundation cooking course.

This initiative aims to help equip school catering staff with essential cooking skills, empowering them to provide nutritious and delicious meals to our customers. The course seeks to build upon existing skills, learning new techniques to ensure every staff member is consistent in their cooking practices to ensure the best end result.

As the food landscape continues to evolve, Mellors recognises the vital role that we play in nourishing young minds. The Cookery Course has been thoughtfully designed to provide catering staff with the fundamental cooking skills and knowledge required to create wholesome, balanced, and appealing meals for students.

Key highlights of our School Catering Skills Program include:

1. Hands on Cooking Training – The course offers comprehensive hands-on training in foundation cooking techniques, and knife skills. 
2. Nutritional Education – An emphasis will be placed on preparing fresh fruit and vegetables, ensuring dishes contain plenty of nutrition. 
3. Menu Development and Presentation – Providing knowledge and skills to develop and present food aesthetically and appealing to our customers.
4. Reducing Waste – The training covers how we can produce great food, whilst managing our portion control and minimising food waste, without compromising on quality.

At Mellors, we believe that investing in the skills of our staff is an investment into the wellbeing of our future generations and helps aid continual staff development. 

John Connolly, Mellors Executive Development Chef said,

“The course is a fantastic opportunity for catering teams to sharpen their culinary skills. I hope this course will inspire our catering team to cook with confidence and deliver better looking and great tasting food as a result to help nourish our customers.”

Tracey from Greenside Primary School said, 

“I have picked up lots of new ideas and have really enjoyed the days cooking course. I have learnt new ways to present food and I’m looking forward to trying this in my own school kitchen.”

Another participant added, “It has been refreshing to meet other catering teams across Mellors and learning about how their kitchen operation works.”

Ray from The Dean Trust Ardwick School said, 

“The class has been very informative. I have learnt lots of handy tips including roasting my veg for a little longer, adds a shine which brings the colours out better and makes the dish more appealing, hopefully leading to more children eating vegetables.”

Mellors Support Zoë’s Place for a Heart-Warming Family Fun Day

On Sunday 10th September, Zoë’s Place, Liverpool hosted a Fun Day for the families and children who attend the hospice.

Held outside of their Liverpool hospice within beautiful gardens, the Fun Day is a chance for the children and their families to create special memories, filled with joy, laughter and make cherished memories together.

Zoë’s Place provides a short break service, and palliative and end-of-life care to babies and infants aged from birth to 5 years, living with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions.

Since Mellors partnership with Zoë’s Place began in 2014, they have raised over £40,000 and continue to host regular events and fundraising initiatives for Zoë’s Place.

Gina Earnshaw, Corporate & Major Donor Fundraiser at Zoë’s Place said,

“We’re delighted Mellors have been so supportive over the years, through fundraising and events like our Family Fun Day. We’re so grateful for the catering and food service Mellors have provided us with today – the food tasted amazing and everyone has had a super time!”

Mark Lyons, Regional Operations Manager at Mellors said,

“We are honoured to be partnered with Zoë’s Place for almost 10 years and feel privileged to help bring happiness and comfort to hospice patients and their families. The ‘Family Fun Day’ is an opportunity to create beautiful memories and share moments of joy with those who truly deserve it.”

Zoë’s Place Thank You Letter to Mellors

Mellors Catering Services is proud to announce a significant milestone in our commitment to environmental sustainability. We have successfully reduced carbon emissions by introducing electric and hybrid vehicles and reducing overall mileage in the year ending July 2023.

All company car vehicles are now either hybrid or electric. This choice of vehicle aligns with our environmental initiatives through ISO14001 accreditation and demonstrates our dedication to adopting eco-friendly solutions. Investing in hybrid and electric vehicles is a vital step towards achieving a greener future and minimising our environmental impact.

As the ‘First Choice Contract Caterer’ in the North of England, Mellors recognises the crucial role we all play in reducing our environmental impact for future generations.

Tony Trainor, Chief Executive Officer at Mellors, said

“We’re committed to adopting eco-friendly initiatives and are delighted to reach this CO2 emissions milestone, 18 months ahead of schedule! I’m thrilled the team have embraced the change to our vehicle policy whilst reducing their overall mileage through efficient working practices, careful journey planning and car sharing.”

A Warm Mellors welcome to 26 NEW sites!

The new academic year is upon us and the Mellors team has been busy preparing to re-open our education catering units for the new academic school year. We’re excited to be re-united with familiar and new faces!

We are also delighted to extend a special Mellors welcome to 26 new sites, who join the Mellors family this September.  This takes Mellors number of sites up to 360 units operating across the North of England and Wales. We’re thrilled to welcome the addition of 102 new staff members and 6,500 customers across the 26 sites.

Our wonderful Mellors team has been busy mobilising our new sites, providing training sessions and plenty of dedicated support to ensure the best possible food and experience is provided for our customers. Here at Mellors, our family-friendly culture shines though in everything we do.

A massive well done to everyone involved, you really have done an incredible job.

A very warm welcome to all of the new teams who have joined Mellors, we’re so pleased you’re now part of the Mellors family.

Here’s to a fantastic 2023-24, and beyond!

Golden Whisk Final 2023!

On 4^th July 2023 we held the final of the 2023 Mellors Golden Whisk competition at The Cheshire Cookery School in Altrincham.  The annual cooking competition aims to celebrate and recognise our talented chefs and culinary genius across Mellors, crowning one lucky winner with the Golden Whisk Award.

Following an extremely competitive shortlisting process with over 138 entries, four finalists made it through to the penultimate stage – battling it out in a live cook off, against the clock.

Our four finalists included Anisha Issop from Sharples High School, Ray Dennis from Dean Trust Ardwick, Patrick Joyce from Royds Hall High School and Emma Sheard from Kirkleatham Hall Special School.

Sponsored by Unilever UK, this prestigious competition tasked entrants to design and create a dish which utalised leftover food, likely destined for waste and something that could be served in any Mellors kitchen. According to statistics, in the UK 9.5 million tonnes of food is discarded each year and we want to change that!

This years’ theme, ‘waste not, want not’ challenged applicants to be more environmentally friendly by giving their food leftovers a new lease of life!

This meant the competition entries had to be very creative with their menu choices, re-working them into delicious dishes. The theme aimed to promote more sustainable cooking, reducing food waste and lowering costs in the face of inflation and rising food prices.

The live final was judged by Tony Trainor (CEO), Danielle Watkins (Head of Nutrition & Food Development), Anna Bamber (Marketing Manager) and two of the Unilever UK team.

It was an extremely tough decision for the judges to choose between Patrick’s ‘Balti Pie’, Emma’s ‘Taste-Tastic Veggie Burger’, Rays ‘Divine Vegan Selection’ and Anisha’s delicious ‘Asian Inspired Offering’.

We’re delighted to announce that the winner is… Anisha from Sharples High School in Bolton.

Anisha’s dishes tasted delicious and were incredibly versatile. She smashed the ‘waste not, want not’ brief, using a wide selection of leftover ingredients including mashed potato, tortilla wraps, vegetables, jacket potatoes and more. Her food was a complete explosion of flavours and a treat for the taste buds!

Tony Trainor said:

“It’s been a pleasure to experience first-hand the raw talent here at Mellors. We’re so lucky to be able to celebrate the skill and culinary excellence that our catering team possess, who feed more than 120,000 delicious, nutritious meals each day. I’m incredibly proud of what the team has achieved and the food has simply been fantastic.”

Well done to Anisha for being crowned the 2023 winner, Ray, Paddy and Emma for their fantastic dishes in the final and to everyone who took part in the competition.

Pupils at The Bemrose School learn more about healthy eating and exercise

Young people have been learning the importance of tucking into a healthy meal as they find out more about where their food comes from.

The Bemrose School, in Derby, is teaching pupils all about healthy eating and the impact it has on the mind, focus and mental health and that is set to continue into the holidays.

Every year a summer school is held over two weeks in August which is free for pupils in Year 5 and Year 6, going into Year 7. It is supported by the holiday activities and food (HAF) programme.

It teaches the pupils all about healthy eating and living, giving them breakfast and a healthy lunch provided by Mellors Catering Services, as well as plenty of exercise.

James Dachtler, Assistant Headteacher – Primary Phase, said:

“It’s vital to have a balanced diet and for children to learn about eating healthy and exercise.

“It teaches them to have a healthy mind and body which helps with their focus and is part of their general well-being. The summer school is fantastic and it’s fully funded so it does not cost parents anything.”

Mellors Catering Services create nutritious, delicious meals for The Bemrose School and has provided a new way of making healthy eating more approachable and enjoyable, so the children are able to learn in an engaging way. The area manager in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire is Becky Walker.

Mellors donated a ‘grow box’ for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage to teach them more about their food and previously they have also had chance to taste different fruits, which proved a big hit. The box contained a selection of items which included gardening tools, equipment, seeds, gloves and information packs.

A Mellors spokesperson said:

“Mellors are committed to driving education and engagement through mealtimes and added value activity. We were delighted to deliver these grow boxes at The Bemrose School to help boost children’s learning and understanding into the benefits of home-grown produce.

“We hope the grow boxes are an enjoyable practical exercise to help pupils learn more about how to grow food, where it comes from and the ways we can be more environmentally friendly by reducing our food miles.

“At Mellors we’re passionate about fueling learning with only the freshest, quality ingredients from local growers to deliver truly delicious and nutritious meals. We look forward to seeing the plants grow!”