Lunch clubs for older people are the groups families ask us about most, because eating alone is often the first thing a son or daughter notices has gone wrong. Hertfordshire has around twenty that we know of, from a £5 Thursday lunch in Radlett to Age UK Hertfordshire's weekly day clubs with transport. This article explains how they work, what they cost and where to find one.
In our experience, a lunch club does two things at once. It puts a proper meal in the middle of the day, and it puts the same people round the same table every week. The second matters at least as much as the first.
Why do lunch clubs for older people help?
A person who lives alone will often stop cooking properly, not from inability but because cooking for one feels pointless. A weekly lunch club restores one good meal, and it gives the week a shape. The NHS guidance on loneliness in older people points to regular local groups as one of the things that helps most, and a lunch club is a group with a reason to turn up.
Lunch clubs also tend to notice. The volunteers see the same people every week, so a missed week is noticed and a change in someone is noticed. For a family living at a distance, that is quietly valuable.
What kinds of lunch club are there?
There are three kinds on our pages. The first is the weekly community lunch club, run by volunteers, usually £5 to £10 for two courses. The Radlett Lunch Club on Thursday, London Colney on Tuesday and Thursday, the Sixty Plus Luncheon Club in Potters Bar, and the St Andrew's lunch club in Hertford are this kind. Most ask you to get in touch before the first visit so they know how many to cook for.
The second is the monthly church lunch, which is often free or a donation. Hertford URC's Hot Potato lunch, Shenley's soup lunch at St Martin's, Souper Lunches at the Methodist church in Harpenden through the winter, and Sundays Together at St Peter's in Berkhamsted are this kind. They suit someone who finds a weekly commitment too much.
The third is the day club. Age UK Hertfordshire runs 10 to 3 clubs across Dacorum, North Hertfordshire and Hertford and Ware, at around £13 to £16.50 a day, with transport available. They include lunch, activities and company for most of the day, and they are booked by referral rather than drop in.
What do lunch clubs cost?
Community lunch clubs are usually £5 to £10 for two courses. Church lunches are free or by donation. Age UK Hertfordshire's day clubs are £13 a day in Dacorum, or £19.50 with transport, and £16.50 including transport in Hertford and Ware. The dementia luncheon club at the Salvation Army in Harpenden is £4. Where an organiser has not published a price, we say so on the page rather than guess.
How do I get a parent to a lunch club?
Phone the organiser first, because most lunch clubs cook to numbers and like to know a new person is coming. Then go together the first time. Lunch clubs are easier than coffee mornings in one way, because there is a seat with your name on it and something to do with your hands.
The journey is the usual obstacle. A lunch club that depends on a lift will stop the week the lift is not available. Where that is the barrier, our companionship care includes a carer who goes with someone to the club and brings them home, and some of the Age UK clubs include transport in the price.
One more thing we have learned about lunch clubs for older people: the first week is about the food and the fourth week is about the table. So if a parent says after one visit that it was not for them, it is worth asking them to give it a month. By then someone will be saving them a seat.
Where to find lunch clubs for older people near you
Each of our town pages lists the lunch clubs we know of, with the day, the venue, the cost and who to ring. We confirm the details with the organisers and check the pages every week.
St Albans · Harpenden · Radlett and Shenley · Hemel Hempstead · Berkhamsted · Tring · Hitchin · Hertford and Ware · Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield · Potters Bar · All of Hertfordshire
Common questions about lunch clubs for older people
Do you have to book a lunch club?
Usually, yes, at least the first time. Most community lunch clubs cook to numbers and ask new members to get in touch beforehand. Church lunches are more often drop in. Our pages say which is which.
Is there transport to lunch clubs in Hertfordshire?
Age UK Hertfordshire's day clubs offer transport for an extra charge in some areas and include it in others. Most volunteer-run lunch clubs do not provide transport, which is where a lift from family or a companionship carer comes in.
Can a carer take my parent to a lunch club?
Yes. A companionship carer can help someone get ready, go with them and bring them home. Families often arrange this for one regular lunch a week rather than daily care. Starling Homecare's St Albans office is on 01727 324 127.
If a parent has stopped eating properly or eats every meal alone, a lunch club is often the first thing to try. Start with the What's On for Older People pages for their town, and we are on 01727 324 127 if you would like to talk it through.
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