GENEROUS people were able to channel the spirit of the bible to feed over 5,000 people this Christmas.

Urban Outreach's Christmas Dinner on Jesus drive saw 1,565 hampers sent out across the borough – giving 5,042 people a festive meal.

Dozens of churches, schools, and community groups banded together to donate, covering all the costs.

Dave Bagley, CEO, said: "It was just fantastic, we had a lot more people receiving this year but it was nice to be able to meet that need – we didn't have to turn anyone away.

"Since then we've gone into lockdown and it's business as usual, it's not as hard as it was – nothing could ever be as bad as that first lockdown.

"We're currently feeding 300-400 families a week which is not too difficult to do, but we're seeing some people with really tragic situations.

"Some people have ended up in hospital and they're the ones who make the money cash-in-hand; it's sent families into hardship overnight."

"We have food and volunteers, if you put them together we can feed people, and that's what we're trying to do."