About Oak House Kitchen

Oak House Kitchen was established in 2018 to develop and provide catering innovation and training for the health and social care sector.

With many years’ experience supporting a wide range of organisations, staff and patients in health and social care, Preston Walker and James Ball understood that there was a need for sector specific training and systems. Together at Oak House Kitchen they have developed core principles that can be easily understood and implemented across a wide range of services.

The Oak House Kitchen approach improves time efficiencies, quality, choice and safety, while instilling confidence in catering teams and mitigating risk to patients and the organisations providing care services.

Preston Walker is the director of a small care home in England, specialising in elderly care. He is a Michelin trained chef with many years’ experience running kitchens at fine dining level in the UK and Ireland. His role as director means that he understands the day-to-day and strategic requirements. The home has won many awards.

Preston is the Midlands Chair of the National Association of Care Caterers and provides support to the ongoing implementation of IDDSI, globally and in the UK.

James Ball is a self-taught chef with many years’ experience at head and executive chef level. With an academic background in nutrition and physiology, as a professional coach he worked with international and Olympic athletes. This experience underpins the training and development pathways established for health and social care catering.

James was on the steering group that established recognised sector training for health and social care catering in the UK and is also actively involved in the ongoing implementation of IDDSI, globally and in the UK.

Cooks, Homes and Providers

Oak House Kitchen is determined to improve the quality, choice and safety of foods required by those suffering or recovering from illness.

Our training and systems support this aim at multiple levels of delivery:

• Cooks, chefs, and caterers – Bringing clarity to methods and techniques that will bring success.
• Site foodservice production and delivery – Providing simple and achievable processes that structure to team interaction and provide evidence of due diligence practice.
• Organisations and businesses – Directing investment and providing accurate and useful feedback for ongoing, long-term assurance.

Health and Social Care Support

Oak Hose Kitchen provides support across a wide set of stakeholders in the health and social care sector in the UK and globally.

• IDDSI implementation and ongoing support
• Accredited education and training resources at National Vocational Qualification Level and for clinical
• Training and consultancy to:
• Government Authorities
• NHS Trusts
• Local Authorities
• Care providers
• Domiciliary Care
• Product Manufacture
• Supply Chain

Research and Development

Oak House Kitchen continues to innovate effective and achievable methods and processes across the whole remit of health and social care foodservice delivery.

Evidence is crucial to determine effectiveness and quality of investment and Oak House Kitchen works to provide this through research and pilot studies across the UK and further afield.

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