A lunch club at a care home is seeking public support to secure funding.

Speedwell Court in West End is urging people to help its community lunch club receive funding from the Co-op Local Community Fund.

The monthly club offers a free three-course meal for people living with dementia and their carers, along with an opportunity to socialise and take part in dementia-friendly activities.

The funding is crucial to keeping the club free, providing a vital service for many affected by dementia.

Speedwell Court’s customer relations manager, Justine Owen, said: "We know how physically and emotionally difficult caring for a loved one with dementia can be.

"Projects like the Community Lunch Club not only provide an outlet, something different to enjoy, company and a change of scene, but also help our visitors to know that they are not alone and ultimately that there are people who care.

"The meals for the Community Lunch Club come at a considerable cost to us. As a free service run by a charity, we would struggle to sustain the project without support from our community through initiatives such as the Co-op Local Community Fund.

"It would be a tremendous loss to the many current and potential future attendees if the Club was to close."

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The club, run by the national charity Abbeyfield Living Society, was recently shortlisted for the funding, which has shared over £58 million with more than 20,500 community projects since 2020.

To help the club, Co-op members need to choose it as their preferred local cause.

This can be done via the Co-op website or app by searching for Abbeyfield Living Society or using cause number 89967.

Members will then be entered into a prize draw every time they spend £5, with the chance to win £500 cash, and £5,000 for their chosen local cause.

The club will also receive a share of an additional £6,000 at the end of the funding year in October 2025.

Co-op membership costs £1 and can be purchased in-store, online, or via the Co-op app.