The team at St Mary’s has been talking about having a new kitchen for the last ten years. With their original kitchen only suitable for serving teas and coffees and plans for larger scale hospitality on the cards, they needed a refit suitable for professional catering.

Here, Pippa Ross McCabe, Assistant Priest at St Mary’s, tells us how Steelplan created a kitchen to meet their needs.

THE BRIEF

St Mary’s wanted a kitchen that could serve the community. A huge space – the size of almost three double garages – it needed to be both visually appealing and also of a professional standard. They wanted a kitchen where church volunteers would feel comfortable, but professional caterers – hired for weddings and other events taking place in the hall – would also be happy to work in.

“Nobody really ‘owns’ a church kitchen, so people don’t tend to look after them as well as they do their own. So we needed it to be very robust,” Pippa says.

FINDING A SUPPLIER

The church next door to St Mary’s had also used Steelplan for their kitchen, so the company came recommended. Separate research into kitchen manufacturers also put the organisation on the list. “We went to tender and we liked what Steelplan was offering the most. They met the brief in the best way,” Pippa says.

As a community with limited funds, this was not a project the church could afford to repeat. “Whatever kitchen we put in would need to be long lasting. It couldn’t be something that needed to be updated regularly because we simply don’t have the money.”

STEELPLAN’S SOLUTION

Steelplan created a kitchen to meet Pippa and the team’s wish for a professional yet aesthetically pleasing space. Thanks to the huge skylight above the room, they decided to keep colour simple in the kitchen – with blue/grey flooring, monochrome worktops, white walls and a white steel door.

The design makes great use of the space with a central island, as well as base and wall units, worktops and shelving surrounding the edges of the kitchen. The serving hatch facilitates serving for events, with food prepared in the professional range cooker and cleared away using the pass through dishwasher. There is also a counter top boiler for serving hot drinks.

THE RESULT

The kitchen has only just been officially opened; however, initial reviews are very positive.

“We have already had two professional caterers in for events and they were completely delighted with it,” Pippa said. “It’s impressive when you walk into such a beautifully fitted large space. I’m now starting to train our volunteers in how to use it.”

Pippa and the team are looking forward to seeing more members of the community use the kitchen, including their local school which may use it as a teaching space.

The church is also going to start making use of its new kitchen itself, for example, serving hot meals on a Sunday evening – something that couldn’t have been offered before this refurbishment.

“We have wanted to be able to offer hospitality for a long time. Dreams that have been dreamt haven’t become a reality yet because it’s such early days, but they will.”

Steelplan Kitchens offer a free consultation and design service to help you design your Church’s perfect kitchen. To find out more, call us on 0844 809 9186