Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Moray lunch club to curb social isolation hailed a success

Pictured:  Lindsay Welsh (Development Officer for Moray Foodbank) waiting on tables.

Picture by Jason Hedges
Pictured: Lindsay Welsh (Development Officer for Moray Foodbank) waiting on tables. Picture by Jason Hedges

A lunch club that aims to reduce social isolation throughout Moray has been hailed a success, just two months after launching.

The event is run every Wednesday lunchtime at Elgin High Church through an initiative run by Moray Foodbank and the Church of Scotland.

Attendees are provided with a hearty meal on a pay what you feel basis, good company and a chance to stretch their legs.

The scheme was introduced two months ago, and some of the users have already said they are seeing the benefit it is having on their lives.

Sylvia Gray travels through from Forres every week and loves the chance to socialise in a peaceful setting.

She said: “I always come because it is a social occasion and I always get a good meal and to speak to people.

“It is the kind of thing that there needs to be more of throughout Moray.”

John Sutherland agreed, and paid tribute to the volunteers from the foodbank and the church who help out with the lunch club.

He said: “This is a wonderful thing for everyone as we are always treated equally and the volunteers are marvelous.

“There are no strangers here and we are all given wonderful food, with days likes this very much needed.”

Lindsay Welsh, development officer for Moray Foodbank, said the event is getting busier week-on-week, with a steady stream of 30 people snapping up soups and treats on offer.

She said: “Events like these are vital as social isolation is a big problem and something that regularly comes up when talking to people.

“Transport links are poor and a lot of social events are the first things to be cut when it comes down to it.

“Community meals are successful and there are a few throughout Moray but they were mostly full.

“It’s important that cost is not a barrier, as even if they are a but skint they can come along and enjoy themselves.”

The lunch clubs run every Wednesday, with everyone welcome to attend.