Watch more of our videos on Shots!
and live on Freeview channel 276

An £12,000 winter warm space initiative to help people struggling with the soaring cost of living has provided hundreds of Northumberland residents with a weekly evening of food and fun.

The aptly named Winter Family Fun and Food project, delivered by Hadston House, Stobhill Community Centre and Widdy Welcomes, has been providing hot food and a warm space to nearly 120 people a week since October.

The project, which concluded last week, was funded by Karbon Homes’s Community Investment Fund and helped folk of all ages from Hadston, Widdrington Station and Stobhill in Morpeth.

As well as offering residents a fun, safe and warm space and a two-course meal for £1, the evenings also gave locals a chance to connect socially and access advice about benefits, housing, employment and general financial management.

Team members and volunteers from Hadston House with members of the local community at the weekly fun and food evening.

Paul Moralee, community investment manager at Karbon Homes, said: “As the cost of everyday essentials like energy and food continues to increases, community food projects like Winter Family Fun and Food have never been more important.

“We’re proud to have worked with such wonderful community organisations to make these evenings a reality. It’s daunting for people to walk through the doors and hold their hands up and admit that they need a bit of help, and the teams and volunteers running the initiatives have been fantastic in ensuring people feel welcome and that each session is a success.”

The team at Hadston House received £4,000 of the funding to run the initiative at the community venue. And since the initiative started in October, the house has served more than 940 meals.

John Shepherd, management assistant at Hadston House, said: “With the cost of living rising and gas and electric prices going through the roof, we knew that many local people would be struggling and we wanted to do something to help.

“The first few weeks saw a huge attendance and the numbers have continued to grow as the months have gone on. Many have been new faces to Hadston House, worried about how they’re going to warm their homes and feed themselves and their families.

“I’m glad we’ve been able to provide this place for the community and thankful to Karbon for helping make that happen.”

Nearly 1,000 cut-price meals served up as part of winter warm space initiative at Hadston House