Countess of Chester hospital launches new sustainability café

The Countess of Chester hospital is further demonstrating the Trust’s commitment to a greener future with the recent launch of a brand-new sustainability café that offers healthy eating alternatives for its staff and patients.

The Going Greener Café, located inside the Women and Children's Building, opened its doors on Friday 3 November and is an innovative new eatery that offers a variety of food including a plant-based deli bar, salad options, fresh fruit and healthy snacks.

All food is locally sourced from within a 10-mile radius of the hospital and the café uses fully recycled and sustainable equipment that has been re-used from elsewhere across The Trust, including within The Countess of Chester, Ellesmere Port and Tarporley hospitals.

Even the flooring has been made out of recycled materials; the walls constructed from clay free plaster; and LED lighting has been chosen for its many environmental advantages.

The café has been specially designed to ensure easy relocation to the new Women and Children's Building, which is under construction and due to open in summer 2025.

Jillian Morgan has co-led the Going Greener Café project alongside The Trust's Sustainability Lead Russ Morrow.

She said the main aim of opening the new café was to:

“offer staff and patients more alternative options of the food they eat, and to create a sustainable area for them to enjoy under The Trust's pledge to go greener.”

"We want to give customers more of a choice – for their food options to be more thought-provoking," explains Jillian.

"It's also important to have something like this in the Women and Children's Building because we should be educating our younger generation that it's important they are aware of what they're eating and how it affects the environment.

"It's also good for people to be choosing what they want to eat to ensure less waste, so instead of buying a salad that contains things they don't like, for example, and picking things out of it, they can choose exactly what they want from our plant based deli selection.” she added.

Sue Miller, The Trust's Head of Catering, said: 

"The deli bar is something our staff and patients have been wanting for a very long time and is a welcome addition to the catering options already available for the public, which include sandwiches at the main entrance shop and a Costa Coffee.

"It's also in an ideal location; we have already had a few expectant families using the café when they've come for antenatal appointments. It's giving them more of a choice in what they're eating, as well as the chance to come and get a nice big cup tea or coffee and a range of healthy, diverse foods.

“Our thick doorstep toast is a firm favourite on the menu and is already going down a storm with new mums and dads!”

The Green Café is open from 9am -2pm Monday to Friday and is accessible from inside the Women and Children's Building. The lunch deli bar is open from 12-2pm.

The Green Café's current menu features sandwich fillings including egg mayonnaise, tuna mayonnaise, vegan coronation chicken, sweet potato and butternut dhansak, falafel, jackfruit, roasted Sicilian caponata and various protein snacks, porridge pots, herbal tea and a range of alternative plant based milk.