Celebrity chef Simon Rimmer has opened the new kitchen at south Manchester Charity Francis House.

The kitchen has produced more than 300,000 meals for the families of children with life-limiting conditions over 25 years at the Didsbury hospice.

Cramped cupboards and a small serving hatch have been upgraded for modern sleek units and a large island complete with sinks to help with food preparation.

Channel 4 Sunday Brunch host Rimmer said: “It looks amazing, the size of the kitchen that Dean’s got to work in now is going to make life much easier and give him and the volunteers the opportunity to cook more varied things.  It will be brilliant for everyone.

“I’ve always been a big supporter of Francis House, the work they do here is unbelievable. I’m honoured and flattered to be the person to open the kitchen.”.

Francis House chef Dean Jenkins, from Withington, heads up a dedicated team of kitchen volunteers who help out with daily food preparation, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as clearing away and washing up.

He said: “The kitchen was ready for an upgrade, it was quite big but didn’t use the space well. At the beginning we had domestic ovens now we have catering ovens, we’ve come a long way since the early days.

“For the children and families that come here, having a mealtime routine in lives that are often so chaotic is extremely important,

“It takes the pressure off the parents, when they come here they don’t have to cook and worry about organising a meal,

“We have a laugh and a joke, there is a really good atmosphere, it really is a great place to work.”