Meals delivery service continues for elderly and vulnerable people as South Tyneside remains in Tier 3 restrictions

Doing the rounds. Cllr Stephen Dean is one of the volunteers delivering meals from Perth Green Community Centre.

Perth Green Community Association, based in Inverness Road, Jarrow, delivers hot meals to around 20 vulnerable and isolated residents each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Funding comes partly from the National Lottery and the Government’s Coronavirus Community Support Fund.

On November 26 the Government confirmed that South Tyneside would remain under Tier 3 restrictions, which means that meals still can’t be served in the community centre.

So the association is to carry on delivering to around 20 elderly and vulnerable people, with the possibility of serving more people in a wider area across the borough.

Delicious. Residents receiving the meals have praised both the quality of the food and the service itself.

The delivery service is being continued, enabling volunteers to support and engage with older and vulnerable people as well as feed them. The total number of people accessing the scheme will be capped at 50 per day.

The association’s facilities manager, Ian Gibson, said: “We’re going to continue to deliver the meals. We still have the option to do that and will continue to do so, at least until such time as the Government says we open the centre again.

“When we get back to normality we think we’ll still do a meal delivery service, as there are a lot of elderly people who can’t come to the centre who we deliver to now.

“We work in partnership with Age Concern who help us organise deliveries to other areas.

“People who need deliveries can either call the community centre, or speak with someone who is already delivering to a neighbour.

“The centre is also looking for more volunteers. We have enough to organise and deliver the meals at the moment, but we might need more if demand goes up.”

The service is currently run by just three volunteers; Cllr Stephen Dean and two others who wish to keep a low profile.

Residents receiving the meals are delighted with both the service and the quality of the meals.

Anyone who thinks they can help in any way should call the Perth Green Community Association between 9am and 5pm on 489 3743.

Support your Gazette and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news, the latest football stories and new puzzles every day. With a digital subscription, you can see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.