FORMER Tatton MP George Osborne has spoken of his fondness for The Welcome at Longridge after he made a donation of £10,000.

The editor of the London Evening Standard said: “I loved being the MP for Tatton for so many years – and one of the best bits of the job was meeting people who do extraordinary things in our local community.

"I became friends with the team at the Welcome centre in Longridge in Knutsford, and would often visit to see how they helped families.

"I may have gone on to other things now, but I’ve not forgotten them.

"I hope this money helps – and it spurs others in the area to help those of our neighbours who haven’t always had the best breaks in life.”

The Welcome board will meet this month to decide how best to spend the money.

Some of it could be used to help fund a support worker, who has been in place since the start of last month, and who will help people suffering from social isolation.

The Welcome is also helping children with their homework by launching a new homework club today. The club will take place every Thursday from 3.30pm to 6.30pm, and the centre is to run a six-week trial to gauge its support and success.

Juice, biscuits and fruit will be provided, and parents are welcome to come along.

“Mr Osborne has been our patron since 2011, and has always been a great supporter of The Welcome, and has always believed in the work we do,” said operations manager Marie Fox.

“We would like to thank him for the £10,000 support, which is a huge boost, and we are having a board meeting in October, when we will discuss the best way in which the community would benefit from the money.

“A lot of the work we do is dealing with social isolation, and we have a lot of activities at The Welcome to help people engage. The support worker works for 30 hours a week, and we hope to keep her in place for at least 12 months, and hopefully beyond.”

The Welcome was started in 1995, and offers a range of activities, services and support to the people of Longridge and Shaw Heath.

It is open to all members of the community, including young children, teenagers, busy parents and the elderly. In 2011 it was awarded the Prime Minister’s Big Society Award.

Marie thanked Mr Osborne and Tatton MP Esther McVey for their support for the centre.