A KINDHEARTED group of volunteers helped feed hungry families and vulnerable neighbours over the school summer holidays.

The team at St Michael and All Angels Church in Highworth has spent the last five Thursdays offering cooked dinners to children who would have free school meals during term time.

The scheme then grew to include anyone who was struggling to cover the costs of their everyday essentials at the moment, or who live alone and want a bit of company.

They have helped around 30 Highworth citizens altogether with between seven to 10 people visiting per week for dishes including chilli con carne, pizza, sausage and mash, pasta bakes, and other options for different diets.

Aldi, which is building a new store near the Blackworth Industrial Estate, got involved and bought the church group's shopping list of supplies for them.

Church warden Pam Linfield told the Adver: "It's been fantastic to have served our community. We've blessed them and been blessed by them in turn seeing them so happy and well fed. They feel comfortable and loved in here.

"At first, they sat at their tables and kept to themselves, but as the weeks went on they joined each other and started making new friends, which was lovely to see.

"It's been about more than food, it's been bringing people together. This was a massive effort but it's been nice getting to know people who are not normally in our church and ensuring everyone is looked after.

"This all came about because one of our ladies really felt God was saying to her that we need to support our community, especially during the school holidays, so we decided to cook a few meals."

The church wardens and dinnerladies may do something similar again when the winter break begins.

The church is one of Highworth's main landmarks and, in 2019, completed a major £1.2 million restoration which took 12 years to go from first seeking funding to having the final touches finished.

A new kitchen, put to good use for this summer's community supper club, was one of the main changes made to the Grade One-listed 13th century building, along with adding underfloor heating and raising the floor itself while carefully retaining and enhancing its oldest aspects.

The careful revamp reversed some of the changes made to the church by Victorians in the 1860s.