Celebrity Chef Brian Turner presented the prestigious Food for Life Catering Marks to Deborah Kenny from Pride Catering of Guildford. Pride Catering now holds the Gold, Silver and Bronze awards and shows Pride’s commitment to transforming school food culture in and around the South-East. The Food for Life Partnership award celebration ceremony took place at on the 7^th December at 15 Hatfields, an environmentally-friendly conference centre in London......more

We are delighted to announce the appointment of Kevin Pyatt to the position of Operations Director; Kevin will commence his duties on the 5th December......more

The Soil Association Food for Life Catering Marks are for caterers who really care about the food they serve and we’ve got 13 of them! This award is an independent guarantee for all our customers that our menus are freshly prepared, free from undesirable additives and better for animal welfare. Three levels of award are available and we hold the very   distinguished honour of being the only Contract Caterer in the South of England to hold a Gold award. A big well done goes to Operations Manager - Deborah Kenny and her catering teams at the following units:.....more

East Sheen Primary School has recently been successful in its application for the Silver Food for Life Partnership Award. Pride is pleased to have supported the school in this important achievement. The FFLP recognises schools that create a positive food culture. It is about practical food education, food ethics, growing and cooking food and learning about the environment and animal welfare......more

We are pleased to announce that St Stephen’s Junior School has been shortlisted as a Healthy Eating School by the Times Educational Supplement School Awards 2011. The awards looks at Schools that have done something out of the ordinary to promote healthy eating. The final judging is on the 8th July, so watch this space!.....more

Pride Catering was the main feature in February’s FSM magazine. FSM (Food Service Monthly) is the only UK trade title to focus exclusively on contract catering. Company Directors: Tim, Roger and Norman demonstrated to FSM how we ‘go the extra mile’ and buck the recession with our integrity, prudence and passion for good food. The magazine was also impressed by our willingness to serve what was once seen as the unfashionable market: providing meals for the elderly. This has gone on to fuel a dramatic rise in company growth. .....more

- At Pride Catering we promise to put our customers first in everything we do.                    .....more

Pride Catering are the only School contract caterer in the South of England to be awarded the Food for Life GOLD Catering Mark......more

Following on from our previous Red Tractor Accreditations in October 2010, we are now pleased to announce that 2 more of our operations have achieved the coveted Red Tractor status.  Dianne Cooke - Pride Catering Group Manager has led the catering teams of College Town Junior & Infants School and Independent Age Camberley Residential Home to accreditation success......more

9 catering operations of Pride Catering, the Guildford-based specialist catering contractor, have been awarded Red Tractor accreditation at the company’s recent Management Conference held at Denbies Vineyard in Surrey. The operations at eight schools and one business and industry outlet, have committed to sourcing their fresh meat, vegetables and dairy from accredited Red Tractor suppliers......more

On the 14th July 2010, Roger Aldridge (Joint Managing Director) and Deborah Kenny (Senior Operations Manager) attended the Compassion in World Farming Good Egg Award Ceremony at St Pauls Cathedral Crypt, to accept the Good Egg Award for Pride Catering. We were presented with the Good Egg Award as part of our continued commitment to farm animal welfare, and hailed as a business leader in this area.  As a company we only use free range eggs as part of our business. We were presented with the award by Bill Oddie (TV wildlife presenter), along with 18 other companies who also received the award. Pride Catering is very proud to be leading by example, and highlights how higher standards of welfare also enhances food quality......more

We have been awarded the Red Tractor accreditation at Colorcon for using approved Beef, Chicken and Pork.  Well done to all the catering team at Colorcon together with Deborah Kenny – Senior Operations Manager (who lead the initiative through). We will be rolling out the Red Tractor accreditation to other units later on during the year.  The Red Tractor accreditation means that ALL the chicken, beef and pork are from British sources. The farm, slaughterhouse and butchers are all Red Tractor accredited. This ensures that the animal welfare is fully considered. The Red Tractor Award further supports our initiatives for high standards of food provenance – underpinned by our accreditations from the Compassion in World Farming ‘Good Egg Award’ and the Soil Association ‘Food for Life Award’......more

Further to gaining several new contracts during 2010, we are pleased to announce that we have appointed an additional Operations Manager - Simon Tombs. Simon will initially manage some of our new Healthcare units based in South-East London. Simon has a wealth of experience in managing catering for the Heathcare sector and we would like to welcome Simon as a valuable addition to the team. .....more

We are very pleased to announce a number of new contract awards worth £1.8million in annual turnover. New clients include Galleon Care, Saxon Weald, McCarthy & Stone, Mission Care, Heathfield School in Richmond and Durand School in Lambeth. Following these contract gains, we have expanded our Guildford Head Office to assist with the smooth management of the new contracts. The additional offices are now fully operational, they are only feet away from our existing Head Office and have doubled our office space, plus they are fully connected together by technology. The senior Management team, Operations team and Sales team have moved to the new offices and can be contacted via the usual phone number and address. So no disruption to staff or our clients......more

Throughout June, 7 of our Schools participated in a week of World Cupthemed menus, fun, competitions and prizes (St. Stephen’s School is pictured). The pupils really enjoyed the quizzes, winning sports vouchers and trying something new for lunch. Each day there were two dishes from countries that were playing on that day. The dishes ranged from meat and vegetarian main meals, and even deserts. Some dishes proved to be more popular than others, and one dish - Bobotie (South Africian spicy meatloaf) will be appearing on the menu after we had good feedback in all the schools......more

On the 19th June 2010 the residents at Furze Hill Lodge enjoyed their annual garden party, but with a ‘country & western’ twist! This year the party incorporated a cowboy theme, which included a hat stall, a raffle, a cake stall, and a ‘country & western’ singer. Our own Chef Manager; Chris Harcus describes the day in his own special way: “It was high noon at the Furze Hill Lodge Corral. Annie Soakly was busy erecting some flimsy tee-pees to shield the elders of the community and Wild Bill Hiccup was rustling up some fine chow in the cookhouse assisted by Jim Bob. They had managed to winkle out of Ma her secret recipe for apple pie and nearly had their eyes blacked when she cottoned on. Amanda Holdup and Gunshot Genet were busy looking after the raffle prizes in case a brawl broke out. There was a fine array of treasures including a high falutin’ picnic basket handed in to us by Dodger Aldridge - the mean eyed Marshall of Pride County no less. No one dare ask where he got it from but we sure have our own ideas! Wild Bill Hiccup left knowing that Ma’s apple pie and other sweet treats were all gone and Rattlesnake was left clearing up the cookhouse which was no less than he deserved. Anyways, the elders had a real good time, their kinfolk too. They all slept real easy that night.”.....more

Pride Catering, the Guildford-based specialist catering contractor, has been awarded the Soil Association’s Food for Life Silver Catering Mark for its work at St Stephens School in Twickenham, which is also one of Food for Life’s Flagship schools. Not resting on its laurels, Pride has immediately embarked on raising its Catering Mark status to Gold level......more

Zac Goldsmith Conservative parliamentary candidate for Richmond gets a taste for our Food for Life compliant menus at East Sheen Primary School in Richmond. Zac joined the children at this pioneering school for lunch, where he queued up with the children and savoured a delicious Food for Life Bronze Mark roast lunch, experiencing first-hand the benefits of the Food for Life programme. .....more

Norman certainly runs with Pride!  Norman Deas, Non-executive Director of Pride, participated in the London Hotelympia 10k Run on the 28th February 2010.  The Run once again launched the opening of the 2010 Hotelympia Show, which provides inspiration for the foodservice industry.  The Run raises funds for the Springboard Charity, which helps unemployed, disadvantaged young people by providing advice and skills guidance about the hospitality industry.  Under very challenging weather conditions - driving rain, intense cold and gusting winds, Norman completed the course in 55mins and 59 seconds which despite the climate proved to be a very good result and concluded in Norman finishing 5th in his category!.....more

Thursday, 25th February saw the residents at Furze Hill Lodge care home celebrating National Dignity Day by taking a trip down memory lane. Activities Organiser, Julie Cook recreated a Lyons Corner House tea shop in the home’s dining room, with staff dressed as “Nippies” and a sumptuous tea of toasted tea cakes, french fancies, pastries, cream cakes and a selection of fine teas provided by chef Chris Harcus. It was an afternoon that brought back many fond memories for the residents. The mood was set with retro table settings, bone china and music from the era. Several residents commented on how nice it was to have “real” tea and a tea strainer!  Much enjoyment was had by the staff and residents, with everyone requesting the event be repeated next year......more

Reay Primary School in Stockwell, London decided that they needed to revitalise their catering and so approached Pride for help. .....more

Following on from our 5 new contracts in Autumn 2009 and new contracts in 2010, Pride Catering are pleased to welcome Janet Tulk to the team. Janet joins us, from Sodexo, as Operations Manager and has many years experience at senior operational and general management level. Welcome Janet! .....more

On the 30th November Laura Mackay, Unit Manager at Willows Edge care home, coordinated a fabulous treat for the residents. Throughout the year Laura organises Special Events and this day was to celebrate the feast day of St. Andrew (patron Saint of Scotland). The team prepared Haggis, complete with Neaps (turnips) and Tatties (potatoes), followed by indulgent Caledonian Cream dessert. Although the residents were initially wary of Haggis, most found that they actually enjoyed the delicacy. Further excitement was provided by the Newbury Caledonian Scottish Country Dance Society in full national dress. The day was finished off with smoked fish Arbroath Toasties for supper. The residents and staff all delighted in the celebrations and look forward to Laura’s next theme day......more

After gaining Food for Life Flagship Status, St. Stephen’s School in Twickenham had the opportunity of a visit from the Focus on Food Campaign’s Cooking Bus during November. The buses are huge specialist-built articulated lorries which open out to spectacular purpose-built kitchen/classrooms, which are used to promote practical cooking skills. As the school was too small, the bus was stationed at the home of international rugby - Twickenham. The children in year 5 visited the bus for a cookery lesson and were joined by three rugby players from the London Wasps. The rugby players joined in the cooking and they all produced some wonderful food including mozzarella and tomato tart along with pasta salad. Everyone concerned had a really enjoyable time......more

 Pride Catering at one of our Care Home locations in Camberley have been rated “excellent” by Rushmoor Borough Councils ‘Safe 2 Eat’ food hygiene and safety scheme. Pictured is Dianne Cook – Catering Manager and the Care Home Matron receiving her unit’s award and certificate from the Mayor of Rushmoor. They attended a presentation evening on the 3^rd November, congratulations to all the House team!.....more

In October 2009 Pride was fully re-assessed by the Institute of Hospitality. The Institute sets the standards for quality service in the Hospitality Industry. Pride is very pleased to retain this coveted accreditation and is delighted to have exceeded our previous score; this is a considerable achievement in the current economic climate. The assessors quoted that they are ‘pleased to recommend that accreditation is continued and they would like to congratulate those involved on this result and thank them for their openness, co-operation and passion for customer service’. Well done to all staff......more

Pride Catering celebrates the International Day of Older Persons on the 1st October 2009. The International Day of Older Persons aims to promote the independence, participation and dignity of older persons.  To honour the day, the residents and their carers from a residential home in Kingswood, where Pride manages all the catering, enjoyed a silver service lunch, whilst being waited-on by the management. The Ladies in residence have an average age of 89, so this was an excellent opportunity to commemorate the occasion. The choice of menu and wine was decided by the residents at one of their meetings. Following an aperitif sherry, lunch consisted of Melon Coupe or Prawn Cocktail followed by Grilled Lamb Cutlets Vert Pré. Dessert was a choice of Cherries Jubilee or Sherry Trifle and everything was washed down with a selection of fine wines.  At the end of the meal the Pride Catering Chef; Chris Harcus, received thanks for his hard work and culinary skills, then an ovation from the Ladies, enough praise to make him blush!.....more

September 23^rd was Caterers Day at Goodwood and Joan Gilbert – Operations Manager presented the prize to the winning jockey who rode ‘Workforce’ to victory in the Electrolux Professional Maiden Stakes. Joan Gilbert and Tim Price -Director, were guests of Electrolux and enjoyed an exciting day at the races, many of our suppliers – 3663, Bunzl and a number of catering consultants also attended and it was a great opportunity to build industry contacts......more

Pride was up against the catering industry giants and a very large field of caterers, but still came top to win 5 Primary School catering contracts in Barnet, London. Starting from September 2009, our new Schools are: Moss Hall Juniors (with 355 pupils), Moss Hall Infants & Nursery (295 pupils), St Mary's CE Primary School (415 pupils), Brookland Juniors (361 pupils) and Brookland Infants (270 pupils). We would like to welcome all the catering staff who have transferred across to Pride, we hope you will be happy working with us to create school meal heaven!.....more

On the 15^th September, all 4 of our units in Newbury, Berkshire celebrated the 69^th anniversary of Battle of Britain day. This day commemorates victory by the RAF after heavy bombing raids over the UK. The staff celebrated the day by dressing up, decorating the dining rooms and serving a special 1940’s lunch, which included Woolton meat pie; ironically named because in the 1940’s it was entirely lacking meat (due to rationing). In the 1940’s this was not universally well received, but it definitely was this year as it contained succulent beef and was rounded off with treacle tart and custard. Looking fabulously authentic in our photo is Laura Mackay and Rosemary Baker. Thanks to all our staff who helped make our customers have such an enjoyable memorable day......more

 Pride’s training programme has recently seen a large number of our employees receive catering industry qualifications......more

Following 3 years catering success at The Petersfield School and College Town School, our contracts have been extended for a further 2 years with both schools. Well done to all the catering teams involved......more

Chef Manager, Will Watson at East Sheen Primary School has created a unit herb garden, providing a delicious addition to Schools meals. The School also has a vegetable garden and much of their own produce is used for the healthy meals that Will and his team prepare for the children’s school lunches. The school meals are very popular, with up to 85% of pupils taking a hot School lunch......more

St Stephen’s CE Junior School and East Sheen Primary School win runners up prizes from School Food Matters. They both submitted brilliant films about where food comes from. View the films by clicking on this link: http://www.schoolfoodmatters.co.uk/index . Also featured on the films are Pride Catering Chefs: Adrian Crothall and Will Watson, brilliantly demonstrating how to turn the produce into delicious fare......more

Pride takes over the catering at a residential home in East Sussex. The home is a 3-star rated residential home owned by a national charity devoted to helping older people live independent lives with dignity and peace of mind. This is the 3^rd home owned by this charity that we are pleased to manage the catering for......more

Congratulations Adrian, Judith, Laura and Issie (who is currently on maternity leave) at St Stephens School in Twickenham for obtaining flagship status from the Food for Life Partnership. The school is one of only 9 Primary Schools in London to have achieved this. A busy year is ahead of them as they will be receiving visits from other schools and holding events, including a cooking bus where pupils and parents can go on board and taste their food. .....more