Could you lend a hand to help Wellingborough's most vulnerable communities?

Volunteers of a Wellingborough homeless charity have come together to ensure that the town’s most vulnerable, poor and disadvantaged are fed during the current COVID-19 crisis.

The Daylight Centre Fellowship has co-ordinated a project to deliver meals to their clients despite having to close the doors of their drop-in centre and food bank.

Working in pairs and carefully observing social distancing rules, volunteers have combined to provide meals and a snack pack every day for up to 50 people accommodated in hotels, hostels and shared houses in eleven locations across Wellingborough.

Volunteer John Mulhall said: “Although those people have now been housed to try to keep them and others safe, their needs are no less severe and, with no money to feed themselves, nor direct access to the food bank or the centre, taking food to them is the only way to ensure that they don’t go hungry, and I just couldn’t bear to think of that happening.

"I usually work for three projects in the town which involve our taking out food, comfort and spiritual support to those who, before this crisis, lived on the streets, but of course those schemes have all had to stop under the current lockdown rules."

John is now part of a rota of around 35 volunteers representing a host of organisations from across the town, including Street Pastors, Street Church, Street Meals, Teen Challenge and the St Vincent de Paul Society as well as those from local churches and the Daylight Centre.

On their allotted days, John’s wife, Julie, microwaves the frozen meals, which are supplied by the recently-formed Northamptonshire Emergency Food Aid Alliance, at the centre before her husband sets off to deliver them

John said: “I ring the bell and then step back a few paces to wait for door to open and I can’t tell you how thankful everyone is, not only for the meals themselves but for the reassurance that, even living on the outside of society as they do, they know they haven’t been forgotten."

The Daylight Centre Fellowship’s food delivery ensures clients receive a hot, nutritious meal as they may not have access to kitchen equipment or the necessary skills to prepare meals for themselves, for which food parcels are inappropriate.

Set to continue during lockdown co-ordinator, DCF Trustee James Bellamy, has appealed for more volunteers to come forward:.

He said: “The centre’s ongoing role is to support those who are at their most vulnerable, whether because of complex mental health issues, learning difficulties, drug or alcohol abuse or isolation, often not of their own making, and although they cannot currently come to us.

"We must still reach out to them with our support."

The Daylight Centre team is looking for volunteers who can help heat up and deliver meals.

James added: "If you have a couple of hours a week and can simply work a microwave or have access to a vehicle – or can perhaps make a donation to ensure that we can continue to provide this help for as long as in necessary - please do get in touch.

“In the meantime, I offer a massive and heartfelt thank you to our current team of amazing volunteers, like John and Julie, who are making such a difference to the lives of so many and without whom we could not have achieved what we have so far."

To find out more about the work of the Daylight Centre Fellowship, including becoming a volunteer, call 01933 446490 or to make an online donation, please visit www.daylightcf.org

A message from the Editor: Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper when you do your weekly shop.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you