THE YELLOW and Blue Hub (Y&B) anticipates ever increasing demand on its services as the cost of living crisis continues to worsen.
In July, the Wrexham city centre-based community hub launched a six-week iniative to offer free packed lunches for children. It has been handing out around 30 of the packed lunches a day.
Founder of the hub, Pete Humphreys, said the scheme has been a "relief" for families struggling with the current cost of living - but anticipates things are only going to get worse.
"Our free packed lunch scheme has been lifeline to a lot of families," he said.
"It's been a relief for families who know they can bring their kids to the town centre and that they don't have to worry about the extra cost of buying their lunch. That's what Y&B is all about - supporting local people and putting a smile on faces.
"But we're under no illusions about how difficult the next few months are going to be with the fuel crisis."
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On Friday, Ofgem announced that UK energy prices will rise by 80 per cent (£1,571) in October.
"We have increasing numbers of people coming in who are worried about fuel poverty," Pete said.
"A lot of people just don't have enough money coming in to heat their homes. We had a meeting today (Friday) about what we can do to help. One thing is just making the hub a warm place people can come if they're struggling to afford to heat their own home."
On the back of the success of the free packed lunches scheme, Y&B is looking to ramp up the amount of winter food parcels it hands out.
"Last year, we gave out over 40 tonnes of food at Christmas time and this year we're looking to build on that," Pete said.
"It's clear that there are going to be greater of numbers of people that need our help, especially in the cold winter months when families are left with the choice of to heat or eat."
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To ensure the Y&B Hub can meet demand, Pete is urging people support it as much as they can.
"We have an absolutely brilliant community in Wrexham, and it's something that doesn't get recognised enough," he said.
"The support people have shown us has been amazing. We need this support over the coming months, people eating in our cafe and attending our events, so we can continue funding the charitable work we do."
To keep up to date with Y&B hub's events, follow its Facebook page at https://bit.ly/3Rbif3p
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