BRIDPORT-based Local Food Links is on track to be named one of the best businesses in the south west.

The school meal provider is an area finalist in the Federation for Small Businesses Awards in the Scale Up Category.

This recognises businesses that have taken the leap to a whole new level, demonstrating true entrepreneurial spirit, market leading growth and outstanding leadership.

The organisation recently opened a new hub kitchen in Weymouth and has been supplying 15 additional schools from September 2018, taking the total number of schools it works with up to 50.

These include Bridport Primary School, Burton Bradstock School, Symondsbury Primary School, St Michael’s Primary School in Lyme Regis, St Mary’s Academy in Beaminster, St Catherine’s Primary School and Charmouth Primary School.

Local Food Links predicts that it will serve 1,534,000 meals in the 2018/19 academic year, an increase of 500,000 meals.

Caroline Morgan, chief executive of Local Food Links, said she was “thrilled” when she received the news.

She said: “This is fantastic news and a wonderful start to the new year.

“Our Weymouth expansion has required a tremendous amount of hard work by the entire team.

“We are so pleased that this has been recognised and that we have been shortlisted for this award.

“I would like to thank all our staff and schools for their ongoing support.”

A Local Food Links chef will also be striving for success in the Lead Association for Catering in Education (LACA) School Chef of the Year competition.

Christopher Plowman has been named one of five south west finalists and will go head to head with the four other competitors on January 23, hoping to be named South West School Chef of the Year.

Against the clock and under the scrutiny of a panel of judges, he will prepare four portions of a chicken and aubergine curry with sunshine rice, homemade naan bread, dressed courgette ribbons and raita, as well as an orange and mango marbled cheesecake with a flapjack base.

Competitors will have 90 minutes to complete their dishes and can spend a maximum of £1.30 for the cost of one main and dessert.

The overall winner will go on to represent the south west against nine other regional champions in the national final in March.