Two of the biggest names on the High Street – Costa Coffee and M&S Simply Food – have opened their doors at Bradford Royal Infirmary as part of a multi-million pound development.
The well-known brands will offer food and drink choices and improve the experience of patients, visitors and staff.
The outlets are based in the new £28m hospital wing, which, once completed, will house wards for children and the elderly as well as a state-of-the-art intensive care unit.
As part of the transformation, the hospital’s main entrance in Duckworth Lane will also undergo a major overhaul.
The entrance is home to the new retail outlets as well as Lifestyles restaurant and Amigo newsagents.
And staff, patients and visitors are already enjoying other new food and drink facilities which have recently opened elsewhere on the hospital complex - two Delimarche catering outlets, located in the women’s and newborn unit and Field House, are now up and running, while a third, Delimarche, located on the ground floor of St Luke’s Hospital, has also opened.
All the new food and retail services are being delivered by Compass Group UK and Ireland’s healthcare retail division, which operates more than 175 retail units across the NHS.
Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust chief executive, Professor Clive Kay, said: “We held extensive consultations with both patients and staff to find out what they wanted, and it is this feedback which has influenced our decision to work with Compass.
“This is a very-exciting opportunity for the trust, and the new outlets are greatly enhancing the experience of patients, visitors and staff. These are modern services for a modern hospital and complement our new hospital wing.”
Steve Cenci, managing director of healthcare at Compass Group UK and Ireland, added: “Experience has shown that having branded food outlets at hospitals helps to provide variety, familiarity and a more-positive environment for patients, visitors and staff.
“We have also worked to ensure healthy options are available across all the outlets, to help support the trust’s vision of delivering healthy eating.”