Social Services Award Winner 2007

Sandra Peel North Tyneside Council Having started out as a 10-hour kitchen assistant back in 1984, Peel has gone through a variety of roles such as assistant cook supervisor, unit supervisor and mobile trainer to reach her current position as community meals manager. This experience has helped her in meeting the challenges of running an in-house local authority catering operation that delivers hot freshly prepared meals for elderly customers 365 days a year. The task includes the management of a volunteer workforce of 38 drivers and helpers that delivers the meals. Peel knows partnerships are important and she has nurtured links with a number of organisations with links to the elderly - VODA, Live at Home and Age Concern. It's all work that helps the service achieve a customer satisfaction score of 93.6% in surveys. Ever an eye on detail, she last year spotted an opportunity to save the service £10,000 through improved ordering and stock control of foil containers and lids.