HELP - which stands for Homeless, Elderly, Lonely and Poor - is a group that organises lunch clubs for people who can’t afford to have a hot meal every Mondays at the South Grove Community Centre in Woodston.

They are now appealing for a new cooker to keep the service running.

Anita Rowcliffe Barwick and her team of seven volunteers have been feeding people since last April.

The team says the number of people coming through the doors has gone up significantly. It was only eight when they first started, but this week alone they cooked and provided meals for over 60 people.

Anita said: “We feel very passionate about what we do and wouldn’t not want to stop it. It’s very rewarding.“

“The cooker we have at the minute is a big oven basically which is very old and is not able to cope with the rising cooking needs. It has various technical issues which is making it difficult to boil sauces, heat food, boil water. It's taking way too long.”

The team rely on donations from the community and local businesses to provide this service. It is now appealing for people to come forward and help sponsor a new cooker for the lunch club.

Anita thanked the people who have already offered support, and said: “We have been inundated with offers to volunteer which is great. I have got a fantastic team who give their time to the service. We are always grateful for the donations, please keep them coming.”

If you would like to get involved or support the initiative, you can get in touch with HELP on Facebook or drop us a line at info@peterboroughmatters.co.uk.