A Somerset initiative to assist vulnerable citizens has been boosted by a donation of £2,000 from a local property developer.

Persimmon Homes South West gave the support to the Wellington Baptist Church following their application to the developer's Community Champions programme, designed to support causes and organisations across the UK.

The funds are earmarked to help facilitate the Wellington Warm Place, an initiative organised by the Church that occurs weekly on Thursdays at the grade two-listed halls.

Anyone grappling with financial difficulties, mental health struggles, or loneliness is welcomed and catered for with two free hot meals as well as additional food and groceries at no cost.

Having begun its operation in October 2022, Wellington Warm Place depends on donations such as this to maintain and enhance the accessibility of its services.

The recent contribution from Persimmon Homes will be used to upgrade the bathrooms at the Church premises, an improvement that will ensure it can continue to meet the growing need of the programme.

In addition to the developer's donation, the Church has been actively fundraising.

Other initiatives, including a harvest supper and auction, a Christmas concert, a Sunday roast lunch, Christmas dinner for senior ladies, and a high tea for senior ladies, have accumulated a total of nearly £3,500.

Persimmon Homes South West sales director, Stacey Harris, said: "As we prepare to bring much-needed new homes to meet housing need in Wellington and Rockwell Green, it is important to us at Persimmon to demonstrate our commitment to leaving a positive and lasting legacy beyond high-quality development.

"Our Community Champions scheme is there to support excellent initiatives and organisations like the Wellington Warm Place programme hosted by the Baptist Church, so we were delighted to be able to help them in a very competitive quarter for applications.

"It's clear that Warm Place is highly regarded by the local community and plays an incredibly important role in the area and we are delighted that our donation will help the Church deliver their programme for vulnerable people here."

Reverend Sam Griffiths, Minister of the Wellington Baptist Church, said: "The Warm Place is essential to our community – described as a life-saver, a reason to get out of bed, an opportunity to socialise with other people – so we are very grateful to Persimmon for their support.

"We have over 40 guests every week, serving a variety of people from all walks of life but who are not in a good place when they visit, making it important that we are able to cater to them as best as possible.

"These funds from Persimmon will make it much easier for us to do this, particularly with improved facilities, which means we can hopefully expand our offering in Wellington for those that need our support."

The developer’s Community Champions scheme sees more than £700,000 donated to good causes and organisations across Britain every year.