A PARTNERSHIP that provides free cooked meals to people isolated by cornonavirus and in need of support has received an £8,000 boost from the Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund.

The Crisis Response Food Group, led by Blackburn with Darwen Council, was in danger of running out of cash.

Since April the group has been distributing more than 800 meals to vulnerable residents including families, carers and older people.

The Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund is a charity set up with the consent of Her Majesty The Queen.

One grateful recipient of the meals is 87-year-old Norman Jackson who was told to shield at home.

His daughter Cheryl Ellement said: “I am so grateful. The volunteers are really nice and it has made a big difference to my dad and me.”

The group is made up of local organisations, including Blackburn Food Bank, Darwen Food Bank, BwD Healthy Living, Benefit Mankind, Masjid-e-Tauheedul Islam Community Care, and Blackburn Youth Zone.

The meals are cooked in the kitchens at Tauheedul Islam Girls’ High School and Westholme School.