A WITNEY councillor has backed a petition opposing plans to replace fresh food cooked by chefs at Witney Community Hospital with chilled ready meals.

Oxfordshire county councillor for Witney South and Central Laura Price, who is also a member of the Oxfordshire joint health overview and scrutiny committee, called the plans to replace freshly cooked food at Witney Community Hospital with pre-prepared meals a “backward step” in food standards.

Health workers’ union Unison has launched a campaign again fighting the removal of chefs from Oxfordshire’s community hospitals.

Ms Price said: “I feel that moving away from fresh-cooked food is just a backward step, especially as now we have an understanding of how important to patients’ food is in terms of health and recovery.

“I understand that everyone in the public sector is looking to save money, but now more than ever we should be looking to raise the bar in food standards."

Our top stories

She added: "This move is in the name of short-term cost saving, but once you have taken that step it’s very hard to wind it back.”

She added: “I wouldn’t like us to rush into this decision – I would like to see more study into it.

“I think they [the hospital] are under pressure to make savings and I understand, but I don’t want to see our NHS put in that position.”

The cook-chill method of food preparation is already in use at Bicester, Abingdon, Henley and Oxford City hospitals, with meals cooked and chilled off-site, before being transported to the hospitals and reheated.

David Speller, from Stoneleigh Drive in Carterton, was discharged from Witney hospital a week ago [March 24].

Mr Speller, 66, moved to Witney from the Churchill Hospital, where cook chill meals are used, and said while recovering from chemotherapy at Witney he noticed the difference in the quality of the food.

The 66-year old said: “It was heartier and more substantial, more satisfying. The best thing about it was that it was piping hot.

“I ate more when I was at Witney, and it certainly helped me along. The roast dinner was lovely, and there were a few things I tried which I had never had before, like chilli con carne, macaroni cheese, and tuna bake. I was quite upset when I heard they were bringing in the pre-cooked meals. It’s no good – you’ve got to have it cooked fresh on site, or you’re just going backwards.”

An Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said: “'Cook chill’ meals are already served to most of the trust’s patients at all of our mental health hospitals and around half of our community hospitals.

“We recognise at some hospital sites patients and staff are used to having food cooked and prepared on site and there may be some resistance to change. We believe, however, a new unified system needs to be introduced for the benefit of patients and the trust as a whole."