Shropshire's Age UK day centres for older people fully open again
Day centres which closed due to the pandemic are now fully re-opened and welcoming new members, according to a charity.
Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin (STW) said its nine Telford sites are all back up and running.
The centres, at Donnington, Wellington, Newport, Madeley, Shawbirch, Hadley, Malinslee, St George's, and Stirchley, offer a place for older people to meet up and socialise.
The facilities across the county were a major casualty of the pandemic, with concerns about the spread of Covid to vulnerable people forcing their shutdown.
A spokesman for Age UK STW said they were thrilled to be back.
He said: "After almost two years of having to close our doors due to the pandemic and lockdowns our day centres have been safely reopened and are welcoming back new and existing members.
"The day centres are for older people and are an important part of a local social community and are even more important now to help us get back to doing normal things again."
The day centres open one day a week from 10am until 2pm and are run by teams of dedicated volunteers.
The spokesman added: "They pack a lot into the day and include a variety of activities that can be tailored to what the group want to do but include various crafts and musical activities, quizzes and games. A social game of bingo is also very popular at most of the centres and there is always a chance to socialise around the dining table with a hot two-course meal."
Sarah Jones has lived in Sutton Hill since 1970 and used to be a seamstress at the Beeches and Telford Hospitals, making and repairing curtains for the bed bays and scrubs for the staff.
She heard from a friend that the day centre at Bridle Court in Madeley had reopened and decided to give it ago and has not looked back since.
She said: “I really look forward to my weekly day out now, I get picked up on the bus and Bob who is our passenger assistant is lovely and so helpful. I have made some lovely friends and we enjoy talking about what we used to do and we even do other things together and ring each other up.”
For information about the centres contact 01743 233123 - alternatively, download a referral form from ageukstw.org.uk.
