David Jacobs launches That Helping Hand in Rustington

That Helping Hand is geared to providing practical help for people aged 75 and over in Rustington and the Brookfield ward of Littlehampton.

“It’s a wonderful idea,” said David, who is still working for BBC Radio in his 80s, and has many roots in this area, where both he and his mother lived.

“It feels like home,” he told guests at the launch celebrations at the Littlehampton Rotary Club charity shop, in Broadmark Parade, on Monday.

He added: “It is not until you reach your older years that you realise such things as trying to retrieve something from the attic or turning a mattress are not as simple as they once were.

“Even tasks such as changing a battery in a smoke alarm or sorting through a pile of paperwork can be daunting in the extreme.”

The club has joined forces with Littlehampton-based Age UK West Sussex to set up the scheme, which involves a team of volunteers carrying out a wide range of odd jobs in the home and garden, although organisers stress it is not intended to supplant existing traders.

Subscribers to the service will pay a £25 registration fee, also covering the cost of two home visits for up to 90 minutes.

Money raised at Rotary’s charity shop is helping to start up the scheme.

Depending on how the initiative progresses, it could be rolled out to other parts of West Sussex.

The first volunteers have been recruited, but more are needed and anyone interested should telephone 01903 731800.

Would-be subscribers can also telephone call, or look out for a That Helping Hand leaflet.