More volunteers are needed to join dedicated helpers at Claremont First Step Community Centre

The centre on Dickson Road in Blackpool, which runs a social club on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9.30am until 2.45pm, needs at least four volunteers to serve food, call bingo, help with quizzes and lend a hand in the cafe area.

Cathy Adams, who runs the clubs, explains that the volunteers are more like friends to the members.

She said: “They get to know the people they’re dealing with and talk to them about their life.”

The club is really important to the local community, with the centre being well-known and is often referred to by adult social services.

Cathy added: “Some of the members haven’t got family, sometimes it’s their only outlet and it can be a lifeline.”

A luncheon club also runs on Fridays, from 11.30am to 2pm.

This month, the members visited ‘China’s First Emperor and the Terracotta Warriors Exhibition’ in Liverpool.

Volunteers are always invited on these trips, which gives them chance to visit different parts of the country.

Cathy said the volunteers are dedicated and enthusiastic, with one being there since 2004.

She added: “The volunteers we’ve got are brilliant but we don’t want to make it hard for them.

“We need four or five more volunteers, but the more who sign up the better.”

If you are interested in volunteering, call (01253) 299306.

By Shauna Lewis