23 March 2020

Community spirit helps to fill Pilgrims Hospices kitchens

Local suppliers, businesses, restaurants and manufacturers have all helped Pilgrims to keep the kitchens stocked with fresh produce, allowing the hospices to offer a full menu to patients and staff. While many local services have been postponed in order to stem the flow of the Coronavirus, business owners and suppliers have generously thought of Pilgrims Hospices; offering their excess fresh produce to be utilised in the charity’s kitchens.


The catering teams across Pilgrims Hospices wish to thank the local community for their amazingly generous donations which have allowed the hospices to provide a consistently full and varied menu at the hospices in Ashford, Canterbury and Thanet.

Ian Ashton, Catering Manager for the hospices said: “The local community spirit has truly shone through, we are immensely grateful for everyone’s support.

“We are delighted to say, through so many generous donations, Pilgrims Hospices has now fully stocked fridges and our cold stores are currently at capacity with fresh produce.”

“The east Kent community is always extremely generous and our relationships with businesses that have extra capacity play an important role in how our catering budget and kitchens are managed.

The local community spirit has truly shone through, we are immensely grateful for everyone’s support.

Ian Ashton, Pilgrims Hospices Catering Manager

“As we have no further storage capacity we will have to refuse any further donations for the immediate future.  However, if you would like to share produce with us in the future, we will be delighted to hear from you.”

Thank you everyone for supporting Pilgrims Hospices catering team with your generous offers.

If your business would like to support us with produce in the future, please contact Ian Ashton, Pilgrims Catering Manager by emailing [email protected].


Care is provided from three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury and Thanet as well as in patients’ own homes.  To offer these services to patients and their families the charity must raise £11 million each year from the generous local community.