The cost-of-living crisis has hit communities hard all over Wiltshire, and people have been wracking their brains on how they can help others get by.

In Marlborough, several venues are exploring the possibility of opening as “warm spaces” to help those with concerns over energy bills.

According to Marlborough Town Council, the idea would be that each participating organisation would be open for one day per week to be a welcoming warm space.

A spokesperson for the council said: “There needs to be a reason why people come so that they don’t feel beholden.”

It was on the agenda for the council to discuss the concept at their meeting on October 3, where it was noted that teas, coffees, and hot food could be available and some kind of activities could be on hand, as well as potential crafts, quiz times or a friendship lounge.

A spokesperson for the council said regarding the cost of living crisis: “It was agreed at the meeting that the proposal to agree on how to provide support be deferred until after the next meeting of the partnership group.”

The possible participants listed by the council include:

• Marlborough Leisure Centre

• The Parade Cinema

• Christchurch / Emanuel

• Schools such as St. Mary’s, St. Johns and Marlborough College

 • St. Mary’s Church

• St. Peters

• Jubilee Centre

 • Library

• Old Police Station

Warmspaces.org is currently building an online directory of warm banks- listing free community spaces people can get warm for free up and down the country amid the current financial crisis.

No sites are listed in Marlborough right now, but other places in Wiltshire where people can visit warm rooms include Trowbridge Museum and the Hope Centre in Salisbury.

Collections and Exhibitions Officer at Trowbridge Museum Nikki Ritson told this newspaper: “We applied through Warmspaces.org which is the big national one and it’s really simple- you just put your details in, what you can offer and when.

“It couldn’t be simpler to sign up, and because we’re a local authority we just said to the Town Council we would like to do it- they were really keen so we did.

“We do quite frequently have people come in and use the space and sit down in the food and drink- and it will be interesting to see how many people come in after half term is over as well.”