BOSSES at a community store which sells food at rock bottom prices are thrilled to have reached a milestone number of members.

The Nest, a not-for-profit community shop based in Weymouth, opened its doors 10 weeks ago to provide cheap, good quality food to families and individuals who have limited disposable income.

The store can only be accessed by those who have become members and bosses are thrilled that 150 people have now signed up.

Neil Hardisty, director of The Nest, said: "To say we are pleased is an understatement. The uptake was gradual at first as people started to hear about us and what we were doing but it seems to be increasing at a faster rate now which is fantastic news.

"We know there will be so many people in Weymouth who will benefit from this service and we want to reach all of them.

"The number of people needing help is going to continue to increase due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic and we want to support them all."

Most of the food The Nest provides is from FareShare, a charity network aimed at relieving food poverty and reducing food waste, however, the community store gets some additional food from Lidl, Waitrose and Tesco, who donate food that would otherwise be thrown away, for example baked goods that were not sold on the day they were made.

Mr Hardisty said: "One of the purposes of The Nest is to match up the totally edible food that would be chucked away with the people who cannot afford to buy themselves a decent food shop and we are able to do that which is fantastic."

Anyone wishing to access the shop must become a member which is free to do and can be done on The Nest Facebook page. There is no strict criteria for membership but receiving universal credit, income-based benefits, children receiving free school meals or working with a debt charity would automatically qualify a person for membership.

After membership has been secured, it costs £3.50 to get 10 items from the shop, or £5 to get 15 items. Members can visit the store weekly.

Bread, fruit and vegetables are freely available to members and not included in the number of items.

The store is open from 10am to 2pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

For more information, visit The Nest Facebook page.