High-end chef turns hospice cook after son's death

A chef has given up his 30-year career in high-end restaurants to cook at the hospice which looked after his child.

Jon Smith's 17-year-old son, Seb, died at St Catherine's Hospice in Scarborough in 2022, after he was diagnosed with leukaemia.

Mr Smith, who once cooked for Queen Elizabeth II, said: "You learn to live with it, but it changes your perspective, without a doubt.

"I needed a reset, and this was it for me. You don't normally get to do real good, so it's very rewarding."

Mr Smith said as well as meeting nutritional needs, he wants to "give that element of warmth and comfort through food when people need it most".

He has travelled the world and owned multiple restaurants in his long career.

St Catherine's needs to fundraise about £6.1m per year to allow it to provide inpatient and community end of life care across North and East Yorkshire.

Members of the public and hospice visitors can try Mr Smith's menu and contribute to the funding of the hospice by visiting the Flavours Bistro at the site.

Lynsey Marsden, whose dad Jimmy Hill passed away from colon cancer at the hospice last August, said he was able to experience the food he had always loved in his final days.

"He had a very sweet tooth my dad, so Jon made him special milkshakes - Dad loved the iced caramel frappes.

"His taste had changed and he couldn't eat big portions, [but] he actually got to enjoy it. It made a massive difference to him, and I'll never forget it."

She said the atmosphere in the bistro was "lovely" when she and her mum would visit.

"We were really sad. To be able to come somewhere where you can feel 'normal' and be around the public is absolutely amazing."

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