At the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) awards, which took place in Derry on 13 September, the Civic Catering function of Birmingham’s City Council was presented with the best service team honour.

This award was in recognition of the authority’s great efforts to meet the needs of Birmingham’s diverse community, as well as the progress that has been made in reducing its carbon footprint, facilitating work placements and apprenticeships and providing support to the city’s ethnic caterers.

In terms of recent initiatives, Civic Catering has be running ‘A Taste of the Caribbean,’ a challenge for locally-based catering firms specialising in African-Caribbean cuisine, where the best among these will be added to an approved list of suppliers, which is accessed by individuals or enterprises wanting to host events in Birmingham.

Spearheading the council’s provision of catering services since 1947, Civic Catering provides refreshment for a whole host of occasions, not just municipal meetings and events, with its catering expertise also put into practice for functions staged by external organisations, which in turn helps to boost revenue for the local authority.

Deputy Leader of Birmingham City Council, Councillor Paul Tilsley, said, “”The Civic Catering team has gone the extra mile in recent years to ensure that the service it provides is the best it can be.” Commenting on the breadth of the catering supplier’s services, he added that Civic Catering has been “broadening its offer to be more relevant for citizens of all backgrounds, through to offering training opportunities to young people and the use of Fairtrade produce.”

Posted by Phil on the 24th September 2010