Culinary Hero Award – Vote Now
The Culinary Hero Award recognises a chef who not only demonstrates the highest professional standards but has also gone the extra mile to make a meaningful impact on their team, community, or the wider industry in a unique and inspiring way.
The shortlist has now been finalised, and we invite you to cast your vote for your Culinary Hero.
Please read the details about each of this year's nominees, and cast your vote below.
The winner will be revealed at the Craft Guild of Chefs Awards 2026 on Wednesday 10th June.
Mark Belford, HIT Training
Mark Belford is an accomplished culinary professional known for his pivotal role as the Chef Academy Principal at The Opportunity Provider Ltd (TOP). Over the years, he has made a significant impact on the culinary industry, combining his expertise in the kitchen with a passion for education and mentorship.
He has successfully led a range of culinary programmes that have prepared students for professional careers in the food industry. His academy emphasises practical skills, creativity, and industry standards, making it a respected institution in culinary education.
Mark has mentored countless chefs, helping them hone their skills and gain valuable industry experience. His hands-on approach in teaching culinary techniques, menu design, and kitchen management has empowered students to achieve success in both local and international culinary careers.
With a background in fine dining and diverse culinary traditions, Mark has championed innovation in cooking, encouraging his students to explore new techniques and embrace modern culinary trends. His focus on sustainability, healthy eating, and ingredient sourcing has also shaped a generation of chefs committed to ethical food practices.
While Mark is a talented culinary leader, it’s his humble, empathetic, and warm-hearted personality that truly makes him an exceptional individual in the culinary industry.
Fraser Cameron, The Globe Inn
Fraser Cameron, head chef at the historic The Globe Inn in Dumfries and the Michelin-listed 1610 restaurant, is a prodigious talent twice named Scottish Young Chef of the Year.
Under his leadership, The Globe Inn has become a sanctuary for high-end Scottish gastronomy, championing local produce and technical precision. Fraser’s impact extends far beyond his own kitchen passes; he is a chef who views his professional success as a platform for community empowerment.
Fraser’s hero story centres on a two-year partnership with The Usual Place, a Dumfries-based social enterprise café supporting young people with additional needs. While many chefs might offer a one-off donation, Fraser committed his most valuable resource: time.
He provided a ‘transformational’ mentorship, treating trainees as peers and granting them access to skills and high-end ingredients—like Galloway Beef and mussel farce—they might otherwise never have encountered. Trainees gained ‘unprecedented’ experience that bridged the gap between social enterprise and commercial employment.
Fraser has shown that a chef’s greatest legacy is not the dishes they serve, but the lives they touch. By mentoring those often overlooked, he has fostered a more inclusive local industry, proving that fine dining can be a profound force for social good.
Matt Davies, British Culinary Federation
Just under eight years ago Matt Davies endured a life changing accident whilst at work in his kitchen which unfortunately ended his career. He lost the use of his dominant left arm and hand and has had to endure over 78 plastic surgeries since the accident.
His arm has now been amputated and he has also suffered PTSD, chronic depression, mobility issues and now lives with severe chronic pain. His life is certainly more difficult but with the support of his family and industry friends it is his charity work that keeps him going and he continues to be an inspirational figure and a huge supporter in the hospitality industry.
Matt is a very proud ambassador of Hospitality Action and over the years since his accident has raised thousands of pounds for Fisher House, Birmingham University Hospitals Charity and Hospitality Action.
In 2025 alone he raised £35,000 organising many fundraising dinners with renowned chefs including £3,000 with Liam Dillon and Louise Ellis, £3,000 at Stafford College with Tom Shepherd, £25,000 with the Great Brummie menu at University College Birmingham, £3,000 with Jon Howe at the Michelin starred Lumiere. In total since the accident he has helped raise an amazing £140,000 over the years.
Paul Foster, Food Unfiltered
Paul Foster exemplifies the true spirit of a Culinary Hero, not only through professional excellence, but through unwavering commitment to people, purpose, and the future of the hospitality industry. For more than a decade, he has consistently used his platform, time, and personal resources to support charitable causes and inspire others, often at genuine personal risk and expense.
In 2024, he cycled from London to Paris over four days to raise funds and awareness for Farm Africa. In 2026, he will continue this pattern of personal sacrifice by stepping into the ring for charity boxing in support of PREPT demonstrating a consistent willingness to endure discomfort and risk for the benefit of others.
Alongside his charitable efforts, he has been a passionate and constant advocate for talent development. He has always supported Young National Chef of the Year and National Chef of the Year competitions in his own time, mentoring, encouraging, and championing emerging chefs without expectation of recognition.
He has authored three cookbooks, two of which are educational, designed to empower young chefs and home cooks to cook properly, with confidence, discipline, and respect for ingredients. He also co-hosts The Nightcap, a highly successful podcast that has become a trusted and respected voice within hospitality.
Robert Kennedy, Compass Group
One of the most significant examples of this commitment is Robert Kennedy’s long‑standing involvement with the Ups and Downs Charity, which began over ten years ago. His journey with the charity started when he was auctioned as a prize to cook for the winning bidder. By chance that bidder was Ron Atkinson, former Manchester United manager and the auction alone raised over £2,000.
Following that event, Rob felt compelled to do more. Despite holding down a full‑time role and maintaining significant commitments with the Compass Culinary Team, he set himself an ambitious fundraising target of £50,000. Over the following decade, through an incredible programme of dinners and events held across the country, Rob achieved that goal—supporting not just Ups and Downs, but multiple charities along the way.
Rather than stop, Rob raised the bar again, resetting his fundraising target to £100,000, demonstrating his relentless drive to help others once one goal has been achieved.
Rob’s appetite for life is infectious. He gives 110% to everything he undertakes, freely offering his time and expertise to support events, initiatives, and individuals. His passion for helping others is not occasional or short‑lived; it is sustained, purposeful, and deeply rooted in his values.
Chloe Pattisson, Meallmore
Chloe Pattison is not simply an excellent chef, she is someone who has changed the way the company thinks about food, hydration, dignity and leadership across care homes. She has gone far beyond her job description, not for recognition, but because she genuinely cares about the people she serves and the teams she supports.
She works within Meallmore’s hospitality team, which spans 27 care homes across 13 council areas in Scotland. Across these care homes Meallmore employ 630 people in hospitality alone. It is a complex, highly regulated environment where nutrition, safety and compassion must work hand in hand. Chloe has become one of the driving forces behind the culture that now defines the company.
One of the most powerful examples of this is the hydration work she has supported and helped embed across the group. At Leven Beach in Fife, the team developed multi-coloured ‘jelly drops’ for residents living with dementia who walk with purpose and struggle to sit long enough to drink.
Families have commented on improved alertness and engagement. Staff have reported fewer concerns around fluid intake. That initiative has now influenced thinking across the wider group. Her work has centred on one clear principle: ‘residents must not just be fed, they must thrive’.
