Lytham businessman Tom Gallagher donates ingredients for 120 turkey Christmas dinners to Wesley's Community Cafe in St Annes

Lytham-based Tom, who runs property development company River Properties, donated the ingredients for enough roast turkey and all the trimmings for 120 Christmas dinners to be made and served at Wesley’s Community Café and Larder on Christmas Day. Tom also made a cash donation of £2,000.

St Annes-based Wesley's Community Cafe and Larder helps local people who need, food, assistance and company Tom said: “The team at Wesley’s do an incredible job throughout the year helping both those in need or people who just need a bit of company. It’s a wonderful organisation and I’m only too happy to help where I can. I wish all the volunteers and everyone who uses Wesley’s the very best for Christmas and 2023.”

Wesley’s, which is based at Church Road Methodist Church community hub, is operated totally by volunteers who give their time and effort towards helping people of the local area. They serve food to up to 700 people a month in the café and offer a welcoming environment for people regardless of their personal circumstances.

Paul Caddy, head of Wesley’s Community Café and Larder, said “We are extremely grateful for the donation. Tom and River Properties are hugely supportive of Wesley’s throughout the year and to make such a generous donation for our Christmas Day meal is very generous and very welcome.” Wesley’s Community Cafe and Larder has approximately 35 volunteers staffing the Café and Wesley’s Larder, plus daily collections of surplus food from food donation partners. It costs £13,200 a year to run and is always in need of volunteers and donations. To get involved please email [email protected]

INCREASING COST

The cost of the items that make up a traditional Christmas dinner has risen three times faster than average wages this year, according to research. Trade union body, the Trades Union Congress (TUC), said Christmas staples including a turkey, pigs in blankets, carrots and roast potatoes had risen in price by an average of 18% in the space of a year, while wages had gone up by only 5.7%. Inflation data also indicates that some Christmas dinner components have gone up by a lot more than 18%.