You’re never far away from a lunch club!

A satisfied group of lunch clubbers. Photograph: Hackney CVS

“You’re never far from a lunch club!” says Judy Harris, a self-confessed champion and project co-ordinator at Hackney Council for Voluntary Service (HCVS), the borough’s umbrella group for community and volunteer groups.

Lunch clubs are oases for Hackney’s older people, providing not only a square meal but also a place to socialise, play games, receive financial advice and even go on holiday.

Operating out of housing estates and community centres, lunch clubs are funded by local government but run by volunteers from a wide range of communities.

Hackney has a total of 15 lunch clubs, which have been running for more than 20 years. They are dotted around the borough and are open to anyone aged 55 and up.

The clubs tend to serve particular communities – with food to match. The An Viet club in Haggerston, might cater for its Vietnamese clientele with a deep bowl of spicy pork stew on the same day the Caribbean Elderly Organisation in Stoke Newington serves up brown stewed chicken and roast potatoes. The menu changes every day.

“It is a pleasure cooking for the elderly,” says Arlene, one of the cooks at the Caribbean Elderly Organisation. “As with everything, you cannot always please everyone. However, it is very satisfying to know everyone gets a nutritious meal. For some, this is their only hot meal for the day.”

In a recent survey conducted by HCVS, 100 per cent of respondents said they had fun at their lunch club and had made friends there. One respondent even wrote:

“The lunch club feels like home to me – the people at the centre are like my family.”

“Since I’ve come here my life has been completely different,” said another. “I’ve made four very close friends and we now go about together as a group.”

Some of the clubs are also part of the Hackney Advice Providers network and have qualified advisors providing advice in a variety of languages.

“The clubs are lucky to have excellent staff and volunteers who go above and beyond for the older people they work with,” says Harris. “Many of the clubs are run by and for older people.”

To attend or volunteer contact Judy Harris at Hackney CVS, judy@hcvs.org.uk/ 020 7923 1962 or call Volunteer Centre Hackney on 020 7241 4443.

Sample lunch club menu (from the Hackney Caribbean Elderly Organisation)

Main: Roast chicken or brown stewed chicken with roasted potatoes, vegetables and salad

Dessert: Fruit or apple pie with custard or ice cream

Tea or coffee

This article is published as part of a Community Partnership between the Hackney Citizen and Hackney CVS.