Meeting the National Healthcare Food & Drink Standards

In our first Expert Series video we explore the new National Healthcare Food & Drink Standards with Phil Shelley, Senior Operational & Policy Manager at NHS England and Chair of the Food Review, to uncover what the new standards include, why they’re important and how they’ll be measured.

The importance of food and drink  

The Expert Series of videos has been created to recognise and discuss the core non-clinical challenges and solutions currently being faced across the health and care system today.  

Having helped contribute to the new National Healthcare Food & Drink Standards, Sodexo Health & Care recognises the importance of the new standards and how, by working in partnership across the health system, we can make a real difference to a patient’s nutrition and hydration. To explore this crucial topic further, we invited Phil Shelley, Chair of the Food Review, to sit down and discuss what the key challenges are, how we can make advancements and what’s next for implementation and measurement. Watch now to hear Phil’s perspective on the new standards and how, by working together, we can take this opportunity to make a real difference.

The new national standards 

Having been published in November 2022, the new National Healthcare Food & Drink Standards aim to improve the quality, nutritional value and sustainability of our hospital catering services, while also addressing the experience and environment in which food is consumed.  Elevating hospital nutrition and hydration to board level accountability, the new standards address the broad aspects of hospital food provision such as governance, workforce development, food waste as well as the choice and quality of the provision available. 

As NHS Trusts and providers work towards achieving the standards and make progress, new and exciting initiatives will emerge which not only enhance the food and drink available but also the experience of patients, visitors and staff.   

Learn more now: Discover how Sodexo has maximised the potential of food and drink in a patient’s recovery journey

Discover the next steps in delivering the food & drink standards   

As well as providing the background to their development, Phil Shelley discusses how data will be used to assess progress against the standards and the timeline for evaluation. By 2024, it’s anticipated that significant progress will have been made, especially with food & drink strategies and food waste, with new initiatives and success stories emerging. 

The needs of frontline teams are also considered – highlighting the requirement for 24/7 provision that supports choice, nutrition and wellbeing. With over 5,000 employees working in Health & Care, this is particularly important to Sodexo which fully support the areas which recognise and address staff needs.    

One of the major challenges in meeting the standards is consistency – however, partner FM organisations can add strength in several areas and, by learning and working together, collective progress can be achieved.  

Discover more about this three-year programme and what providers and partners should be doing to help raise the standards of hospital food and drink. Watch now to hear Phil’s perspective on the new standards and how, by working together, we can take this opportunity to make a real difference.