BRADFORD District Care Trust's two hospitals have served up a top-ten rating for its meals in a national food league table.

The community and mental health provider was ranked eighth out of 287 health care providers in England inspected as part of the Patient-Led Assessments of the Care Environment (PLACE) combined food score.

The Care Trust has been rated as the number one NHS provider who have an in-house catering team with a score of 97.58 per cent for the quality of its food and drink.

An average of 285,000 meals a year are prepared and served across the Trust’s two in-patient sites, Lynfield Mount Hospital, Heights Lane and the Airedale Centre for Mental Health, Airedale General Hospital, Skipton Road, Steeton, Keighley.

Patients can pick from more than 40 menu choices a day with an accompaniment.

These are freshly prepared on the day by a team of chefs, using ingredients sourced as locally as possible.

The Trust spends an average of £10.39 on meals and drinks for patients each day, and has one of the lowest levels of food waste in England.

Meals are regularly monitored by a multi-disciplinary team of healthcare professionals, including speech and language therapists and dietitians.

A copy of the ‘eat well plate’ is displayed with each menu given to patients to encourage healthy eating.

Cathy Woffendin, deputy director of nursing and specialist services, said: “We are very proud that we are the number one in-house NHS provider in England.

"It is important to us that mealtimes provide an enjoyable experience for service users.

"We offer nutritious meals to support recovery and promote health and psychological well-being.”