A Stevenage chef who caters for men and women in a mental health service spoke of his pride after scooping a top award for his promising future in the industry.

Steve Mitchell is the Head Chef at Cygnet Hospital in Stevenage, which offers a range of secure, psychiatric intensive care and acute mental health support for men and women.

He bagged the Bright Future award at the Cygnet Group achievement awards, which is given to an individual who joined Cygnet Group within the last year, who has hit the ground running, had a positive impact within the team and made a meaningful contribution to their service.

The nomination script for Steven read: “Steve has truly turned things around.

“He creates menus to cater for the different cultural and culinary tastes of our diverse workforce. He has enrolled our service users as quality and taste testers for his new menus, which they are genuinely thrilled about!

“He turns up each day with the most exemplary ‘can-do’ attitude and a smile on his face.

“We feel incredibly lucky to have him and we’re grateful for the healthy, nutritious food he serves.”

Upon receiving the award, Steven said: “It's a bit overwhelming to be honest, it's been a bit of a whirlwind. I'm really happy to be part of this amazing company.

“I’m really committed to implementing further improvements at the service and it’s so rewarding to know that changes I’ve put in place already have been really appreciated and been recognised. 

“It’s so important that the service users at the hospital receive the most nutritious and the most tasty food possible, we know it is so important to them and their wellbeing. I feel incredibly privileged to play a part in ensuring that happens.”

The awards took place at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham and all winners were presented with their awards by former England cricketer, Marcus Trescothick, who was guest of honour at the event.

Dr Tony Romero, CEO of Cygnet Health Care, said: "Steven is an example of somebody who consistently goes above and beyond for the individuals in our care.

"He demonstrates passion for his work, commitment to excellence, and an unwavering dedication to our service users."