Sustainable water station trialled at Mid Yorks

Peter Leighton-Jones, Head of Sustainability; Mark Braden, Director of Estates, Facilities and Digital Services; David Shaw, Kitchen Manager; Nick Davis, Director of Hydrachill.

From left to right: Peter Leighton-Jones, Head of Sustainability; Mark Braden, Director of Estates, Facilities and Digital Services; David Shaw, Kitchen Manager; Nick Davis, Director of Hydrachill.

The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust is trialling a new water refilling station with the aim of providing a more sustainable drinking water provision.

The refilling station, supplied by Hydrachill, will provide fresh, chilled and filtered drinking water that meets with strict infection control guidelines. It will also dispense reusable water bottles, costing just £3.50 and branded in the distinctive colours of MY Hospitals Charity – mirroring the station itself.

The reusable bottles will help contribute to the reduction of single use plastic across the Trust and the associated waste that is created, which aligns with our aim to reduce carbon emissions and make the organisation more sustainable, as outlined in our Green Plan.

The station will be located in MY Café within the Trust Headquarters and Education Centre at Pinderfields. This will be for an initial three-month trial period, during which time the level of usage will be assessed. If successful, it is proposed to install further refilling stations at locations across the Trust’s three hospital sites in the future.

As part of the trial, Hydrachill has donated 150 refillable bottles to be dispensed via the station. Bottles will also be available to purchase at the Trust HQ café bar, together with MY Café in the main atrium and MY main restaurant at Pinderfields. All proceeds from the sale of these bottles will go directly to MY Hospitals Charity, whose mission is to raise income and manage funds to improve patient care at Mid Yorkshire.

Neil Harman, Catering Manager at Mid Yorkshire said: “Reducing single use plastic and keeping our staff and visitors hydrated are both important goals for our Catering team, and the installation of this refilling station will help us to achieve these ambitions. Being able to support MY Hospitals Charity as part of this is an added bonus. Although a trial initially, it will allow us to monitor usage within a manageable location. We’re hopeful to rollout additional stations across our other outlets.”

Sam Heritage, Fundraising Manager for MY Hospitals Charity, added: “We are very grateful to Hydrachill and the Mid Yorks Catering team for this donation. We’re delighted to be associated with such a fantastic initiative to help reduce the consumption of single use plastic and provide improved access to sustainable drinking water.”