A FORMER BBC Masterchef: The Professionals contestant from 2011 will be bringing his own particular brand of culinary expertise and passion for home grown produce to a new care home opening near Worcester.

Chris Williams, who used to run the kitchen at the Ruskin Glass centre café in Stourbridge, has been appointed to run the dining room and bistro at Fernhill House in Fernhill Heath.

He is looking forward to cooking for and growing vegetables with residents at the home.

Chris appeared on MasterChef when he was working at an organic café he set up a few years ago at Stourbridge College, which provided work placements for young adults with autism and learning difficulties.

Fernhill House, a 66-bed home for people living with dementia and the frail elderly, aims to put the fun into retirement living and that includes enabling residents to choose the food they’d like to eat in its dining room, bistro and private dining room.

It also means they can help Chris with planting, tending and harvesting vegetables and engage in cookery activities if they wish.

Chris was, until recently, community chef at the award winning Big Lottery funded growing and cooking project Kingstanding Food Community in Birmingham.

He is raring to get his teeth into the new project – and already has plans to build a pizza oven within Fernhill House’s two-acre grounds. He will also grow his own veg – inviting residents to help if they wish – and will be asking local schools to get involved.

Chris’ cooking prowess matches his community credentials. He has been head chef and executive chef at a number of prestigious hotels, winning AA rosettes and culinary accolades aplenty over the course of his 25-year career.

He said: “My work in Kingstanding was incredibly satisfying. I worked with families and local organisations, teaching growing and cooking skills and we used our own, home grown seasonal produce as much as possible.

“I enjoyed making a difference to the community by being able to inspire, enable and motivate local people to eat more healthily.

“Food is such a vital part of wellbeing. I want the residents at Fernhill House to tell me the kind of meals they enjoy.

“Families and friends are welcome to join whenever they wish – every day if they like – at no extra cost, so eating at Fernhill is a genuine community experience and I can’t wait to start cooking.”