NHS caterer offers career confidence boost as Rose rises through the ranks

Sept. 9, 2010 - PRLog -- WHEN Rose Kelleway was looking for the part time job to fit in with her busy home life – it was a case of being in the right place at the right time.

A student from Poland who was staying with Rose and her family was due to attend an interview for summer work. Other commitments forced to her to return home, leaving the role at Lifespan Catering Services to be filled.

“I was interested in finding some part time work which fitted in with school hours at the time and decided to apply for the job myself,” said Rose.

That was almost 20 years ago – and from those early days as part time technician for the NHS hospital caterers, Rose has recently been promoted to the post of Customer Support Manager.

In her new role Rose – who lives in Teversham, Cambridgeshire – will be supporting Deputy Catering Operations Manager Helen Dakin.

And in a double celebration, she will soon be marking her 20th anniversary with Lifespan Catering Services.

Lifespan Catering Services currently prepares and produces over 32,000 portions of hospital food every day – delivering ‘cook chill’ meals to patients in Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk, Leicester, Suffolk and parts of London.

Lifespan Catering Services is the catering arm of NHS shared services provider Anglia Support Partnership (ASP).

The growth of the business and the volume of work have changed dramatically since Rose first came on board helping to weigh out and pick ingredients back in 1991.

She began working more hours and eventually took on a fulltime role as senior technician with additional responsibilities.

“Back then, we had a much smaller team, but as the unit started to grow, I took on more administrative duties like organising staff rotas and timesheets.”

As a former childminder, the worlds of catering and human resources were initially way out of Rose’s comfort zone.

However, a change in role and additional responsibilities was inevitable as the business continued to expand, and a Leadership Development Programme with her employer ASP was the next step.

“It was really daunting at first,” said Rose. “I was comfortable with all the staff I was dealing with daily, but the opportunity to go out and meet face to face customers was something I would soon be required to do.

“The course definitely gave me a confidence boost in dealing with people outside the business and I am now really beginning to relish the challenges and excitement as well as the sheer hard work of the role.

“I do get a tremendous amount of satisfaction from the job and thoroughly enjoy it, particularly when I think about the end product. And if I can do it, anyone can!

“If I hadn’t gone for that initial interview in those unusual circumstances, I have no idea what I’d be doing now,” she added.



Pic cap:
Lifespan Catering Services Customer Support Manager Rose Kelleway – soon be celebrating 20 years with the business.



Note to editors





For more press information contact Cetti Long at Media Matters on (01733) 371363 or email: cetti@mediamatters-pr.co.uk Lifespan Catering Services head of catering Trevor Colcomb on 01223 884111.

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