Care home chef gains top award for transforming residents’ dining experience
A CARE home catering manager has been given a top honour because of her work making residents lives better.
Clare Crowder, who has worked at Greenside Court care home in Greasbrough since 2025, was named overall winner at Exemplar Health Care’s annual Values Awards.
She has been praised for transforming the dining experience for residents and beat 3,500 other nominations across the organisation for the title.
Greenside Court supports adults living with complex needs.
Since stepping into her role, Clare has met every person individually at the home to understand their likes and dislikes, helping to shape menus around their preferences.
Her introduction of a new ‘café menu’ has given residents greater choice and flexibility, while her creativity in the kitchen has enhanced both the quality and presentation of meals.
She has also introduced interactive Cooking with Clare sessions, encouraging residents to take part in preparing meals themselves.
Clare regularly joins residents at mealtimes to better understand what they enjoy.
She said: “I’m really honoured to receive this award. I love getting to know the people we support and creating meals that they genuinely enjoy.
“Building relationships is such an important part of my role – I regularly attend service user meetings and spend time one-to-one with those who can’t attend, which helps me understand their preferences and support their dietary needs.
“I always try to be involved at mealtimes to help better understand things like swallowing difficulties, so I can adapt menus where needed. I’ve even been asked to support other catering managers across Exemplar Health Care, which is a real honour and something I’d love to do.”