A Spalding charity is expanding its offering due to popularity.
Project St Thomas provides a community space in the former Methodist Church.
As part of it, Tom’s Kitchen is open on Wednesdays but it’s now it’s also opening a Hub In Advice Cafe every Thursday.
The idea behind it is to have advice and support sessions on hand, as well as food on offer.
It’s open for a £1.50 lunch from 12pm to 1pm with people from numerous groups attending to offer advice from 12.30pm to 1.30pm.
Among those attending are South Holland District Council’s Homelessness team, social prescribers and CMA Money Advice Service while CAP Life Skills and Jobs Club workshops are also set to take place.
“People can come in and have lunch and the help is there for them if they need it,” said Tracey Carter, Project St Thomas relationship manager. “We’ll have digital sessions once a month too.
“We’ve a youth club that’s really starting to get going too.”
Tom’s Kitchen is having a mini-break in August, but when it is running on Wednesday, August 19 it’s offering up to three kids accompanied by an adult.
Part of the new expansion is because of donations like the £500 one made by the Holbeach charity Chosen Again. It’s going towards the purchase of a new fridge freezer.
Jane Dean of Chosen Again, said: “We are incredibly grateful to everyone for this wonderful donation.
“Replacing equipment isn’t always the most exciting thing to fund, but it’s essential if we want to continue growing and providing the best possible service for our community.
“We are gradually upgrading our equipment and facilities to make the project more sustainable and to ensure we can continue supporting people for many years to come.”
Fr Jim Burke, parish priest and director of Project St Thomas, added: “We are extremely grateful to Jane, the volunteers at Chosen Again and everyone who supports the shop.
“This generous donation is another wonderful example of local people helping local people. Every improvement we make, whether it’s replacing essential equipment or expanding the services, helps ensure Project St Thomas can continue to be a welcoming place where everyone is invited to come together, enjoy good food, find friendship and access support when they need it most.”
