Cannock Chase Hospital kitchen closure date set
The kitchens at Cannock Chase Hospital will close in a fortnight, it can be revealed today.
From December 3, meals will instead be sent from Stafford Hospital.
Three staff have been made redundant as a result, although 22 part-time staff have been recruited to serve the food to patients to free up nurses to concentrate on medical care, bosses say.
More than 2,000 people signed a petition against the proposals to shut the kitchens. Closing the facility at Cannock is expected to save £220,000 a year.
Aaron Cummins, director of finance at Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust which runs both hospitals, announced the decision. "I can confirm that December 2 will be the last day the kitchens at Cannock Chase Hospital will be in operation," he said.
But Cannock Chase Council leader George Adamson said: I'm very disappointed they have ignored public opinion – I think it's just another nail in the coffin."
