Chef makes £5k donation after serving more than 15,000 ‘vital meals’ during lockdown

Jonny Burnett served 1,200 meals a week during the first lockdown, creating Romajo’s Community Meals which raised more than £20,000 in donations.

Operating from The Butcher’s Arms pub’s kitchen in Yatton, Jonny and an army of volunteers had delivered more than 15,000 meals to vulnerable people by July.

Jonny Burnett cooked and delivered more than 20,000 meals from March to July. (Image: Jonny Burnett)

The chef said: “As the weeks went on, and the importance of what we were doing became wider known, we managed to raise an incredible £22,000 to maintain our operation for as long as possible – as many of the volunteers were doing this whilst they were on furlough.”

Mr Burnett’s efforts resulted in him being featured on ITV’s This Morning and BBC’s The One Show.

The hospital, which is managed by Sirona Care and Health, also continued to provide care throughout the first lockdown.

This included community nursing, physiotherapy and occupational therapy as well as out of hospital specialist services.

The cash boost from Romajo’s came from donations from members of the public who wanted to thank the staff.

David Fife, chairman of the Friends of North Somerset Community Hospital, who accepted the donation, expressed his thanks to Jonny and his team.

He said: “A superb effort by Romajo’s community meals with the support of the Butchers Arms pub and many volunteers provided vital meals for members of the community in need during the lockdown.

“A big thank you to everyone both on behalf of the recipients of the meals and the Friends of North Somerset Community Hospital in Clevedon, to whom the balance has been donated.”

Both Jonny and Romajo treasurer Kathryn Delve handed over a cheque for more than £5,317 outside the hospital in Clevedon’s Old Street.

For more information on the care offered by Sirona Care and Health, log on to www.sirona-cic.org.uk