Weekend closure plan for Stafford Hospital restaurant

The restaurant at Stafford Hospital could close at weekends as part of money-saving measures, it emerged today.

The idea of reduced opening hours at Nightingale Restaurant was first raised back in December.

Staff and volunteers said they had now been told that closure on Saturdays and Sundays was the main option. The issue of how to save money on catering at Stafford and Cannock hospitals will be discussed by the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust board tomorrow.

Councillor George Adamson, leader of Cannock Chase Council, is among the volunteers who offer up their time at Stafford.

He said, as well as closing the Nightingale site on weekends, another cash-cutting option is closing the kitchen at Cannock and cooking all patient food at Stafford. Meals would then be re-heated at Cannock.

"Some visitors spend long hours at the bedside of sick relatives at weekends and the idea that they would not be able to get a hot meal is appalling," Councillor Adamson said today.

He also criticised the proposal to close the kitchen at Cannock.

"This appears to be part of a general downgrading of Cannock Hospital," he added.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust has to make savings of six per cent over the coming year and the following two after that.

Trust finance director Darren Cattell has already identified cutting down "unnecessary overtime" as a way of meeting stringent financial targets.

The trust today would not comment on the weekend closure of Nightingale Restaurant but confirmed it was looking to cut the catering budget.

The savings have to be made after it emerged the overnight closure of Stafford's A&E department would cost the trust millions of pounds.

The board is aiming to reopen A&E overnight in October – 10 months after the unit was closed at night because of fears over patient safety following staff shortages.