In early February, two members of the Cam Valley Rotary Club, Malcolm Brooks and Kevin Seery met, suitably distanced and outside, with members of the Temple Cloud larder group.

The purpose of the meeting was to hand over a cheque for £250 to support the work of the larder which began life soon after the announcement of the first Covid lockdown in April 2020.

The aim of the larder was, and still is, to provide basic food to those in the village who are shielding or perhaps unable or reluctant to visit the supermarket. In addition, the group is aware that there are several families in the village needing help as a result of the family breadwinner becoming furloughed, or more recently being made redundant.

The larder group consists of seven or eight volunteers who take it in turns to top up the larder and do the shopping for non perishable supplies. Last year Tesco, through their Fareshare scheme, and more recently the Co-op at Marksbury via their Foodshare scheme, have come on board, donating produce and other items that have reached their ‘best before’ dates.

Sadly the need for the larder has increased significantly during this last lockdown.

Liz Brakspear, said: “The donation from the Cam Valley Rotary Club has come just at the right time for the group and will mean that the ‘larder ladies’ will be able to continue with this very worthwhile cause for the next few months.”