Thank You - Carpenter Catering (Belota)

Carpenter Catering Ltd (Belota) is based in the George Pickering Education Centre (GPEC) on Level 3 of the John Radcliffe Hospital's main building.

In normal times their coffee shop and café, surrounded by postgraduate teaching rooms, is a bustling hub where hospital staff meet, relax and hold informal meetings.

COVID-19 has meant big changes for the company's diverse multinational team, some of whom have sadly left to return home to their families due to the crisis.

It has also been necessary to adapt and change their business model, not least to support their NHS customers through this very demanding period.

They have extended their opening times from 6.00am in the morning until 7.00pm in the evening, and started opening at weekends, while working hard to operate under the two metre 'social distancing' rule, to keep customers and staff safe.

The events side of the business, supplying refreshments and lunches throughout the Trust, has been significantly impacted, and their kitchens in the theatre areas are currently closed due to the pandemic.

Instead, the team is delivering daily staff packed lunches to the acute wards, and in March they began to support the restaurant at the Horton General Hospital.

The team is now divided in two, so that both the Horton's restaurant and the café in the George Pickering Education Centre can keep running.

Every member of the team has been working hard to serve our NHS staff, who appreciate the extended hours, and being able to get hold of 'good coffee' throughout the day!

Carpenter Catering was honoured to help out on International Nurses Day 2020 by providing cakes and fruit to nurses, to thank them for the work they are doing.

"We feel proud to be part of the OUH family", their staff say, "and look forward to a time where we can return to some normality and welcome back some more of our regular customers that are currently working from home."

We look forward to that time too. Thank you all for what you do.