Hartlepool charity teams up with Indian restaurant to tackle loneliness
LilyAnne's Wellbeing in Hartlepool is taking over the Sheesh Mahal restaurant
A Teesside charity say they're creating a community space for anyone who may be alone over this festive period.
It's a chance for people to cook a Christmas-style dinner with an authentic Indian twist - building new friendships, connections, and learning new skills.
LilyAnne's Wellbeing in Hartlepool is taking over the Sheesh Mahal restaurant today.
Trevor Sherwood, a co-creator of the charity, said: "They donate their kitchen to us, so we completely steal their kitchen for the day and we steal one of their head chefs. We bring people together who are going to be on their own at Christmas and we get them making their own Indian style authentic Christmas dinner, which is usually Brussel sprouts with an Indian twist and a bit of turkey in there.
"It's amazing seeing people coming together chopping, cutting, and cooking. We had about 20 people there last year and we hope to have more this year, but it's just about getting people together over Christmas when they're going to be on their own. We pick a time between Christmas because that's when people do start struggling the most because everywhere's closed.
"Everyone really enjoyed just cutting carrots, veg, onions and everything that goes into an Indian Christmas-style curry and it was just amazing. Everyone had fun and we had some kids there with us as well and they rolled their sleeves up. The youngest was five and they completely loved getting involved in the kitchen.
"It was just about being there and enjoying each other's company, especially at Christmas when people feel alone. They really worry about what Christmas should look like, who should be around them, and they have more time to think about what's going on and we just bring people together."