Renaissance Care chef Sean Mathieson has been shortlisted for a prestigious national catering award.

Mathieson, of Renaissance Care’s Rosepark Care Home in Uddingston, Scotland, is among the nominees for the regional finals of the National Association of Care Catering Care Chef of the Year.

“Nobody was more surprised than me when I got the call to say that I had been shortlisted for the regional finals – I’m relatively new to care home catering and just wanted to test the waters to see how I would fair,” Mathieson said.

“I’m over the moon to have come this far and I’m keeping my fingers crossed now for the regional finals in Motherwell in June this year, and then – hopefully – the finals later this year. 

“I’ve always loved cooking. It’s been a passion of mine since I was young, which is why it became an easy decision to go down this route as a career path. 

“I started my training at college and quickly realised that on-the-job training was my preferred method of learning – so then I worked in various restaurants in and around Glasgow before coming to Rosepark in 2022.  

“Catering in a care home wasn’t something I had previously considered. I was guilty of thinking – like many people do – that the menu would be quite limited and there wouldn’t be much scope for creativity or trying new things. I couldn’t have been more wrong.  

“Our residents love trying new things. One of their favourite meals at the moment is our pork meatballs with green Thai curry sauce, for example. We can experiment and offer new cuisines just as much as you can in any other catering setting.”  

The NACC Care Chef competition is the longest standing care chef competition in the UK. It continually challenges people who operate within the care sector to devise innovative and exciting recipes whilst adhering to a strict budget and meeting the nutritional needs of their clientele.