A SOUP kitchen in Leamington has fed more than 1,500 homeless and vulnerable people so far this year – and a man who used to use the service has helped keep it running.
Helping Hands now operates from a shop in Gloucester Street, where it has a charity shop, café, learning centre and soup kitchen.
This year the charity has also helped nearly 160 families through donations of household items, seen six people finish NVQs and helped seven homeless people into employment.
And they have thanked Leamington Round Table (LRT) for supporting their work.
LRT put £5,000 towards the building of the charity’s ‘Lighthouse’ shop which opened earlier this year.
They say the money stemmed from a legacy left by Leamington resident Harry Prue, who received food parcels in the 1960s.
Over the years his donation grew to nearly £15,000 through investment and a third of the money went towards funding the Helping Hands facility.
Former round table chairman Andrew Savage handed a framed plaque to Helping Hands in remembrance of Mr Prue to be displayed in the shop.
Charity manager Lianne Kirkman said: “The support from Leamington Round Table has been fantastic in creating the community facility.
“The team at Helping Hands are so proud of our achievements so far in 2017 and look forward to the rest of the year.
“We couldn’t continue the work we do without the support of the Round Table, other businesses and the amazing local community.”
To support the charity over the next two years, Leamington Round Table will provide £10,000 annually.
Visit helpinghandscharity.org.uk or leamingtoroundtable.org.uk to find out more.
