Cornwall's main hospital said staff have been "overwhelmed" with the "generosity, kindness and practical offers of help and support" from people across the county during the coronavirus pandemic.

One such person is chef and restaurant owner Ben Quinn, who has been highlighted on the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust website page for feeding staff for free thanks to a fundraising appeal that has raised almost £17,000 to date.

Ben and his team at the restaurant Canteen in St Agnes set up a crowdfunding page at crowdfunder.co.uk/canteen-nhs to go towards providing healthy boxes of food for staff at the Knowledge Spa at Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, at West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance, and at St Michael’s Hospital in Hayle.

Initially these meals were being subsidised through the appeal, but as the money raised has exceeded expectations, Ben and his team are now offering the boxes of food entirely free using the funds, across all three hospital sites.

Writing on the fundraising page, the team said: "Many of our friends are frontline NHS staff and we know lots are working in new locations with greater demands on their time.

"We wanted to create the simplest solution for them to grab food and enjoy it when they had the chance.

"Making the food boxes free at point of access is the simplest option and also shows there is so much love and support for the amazing work of our frontline NHS staff.

"Your generous donations, as well as contributions from many frontline NHS workers and their families, is making the very essential need for food on shift as simple as possible."

Thousands of boxes of food have now been produced already and are available on a first come, first served basis, available to staff over lunchtime in Penzance, the afternoon in Truro and on the night shift in Hayle.

The hospitals are asking staff who collect meals to make even a small donation to the crowdfunding page, which is also still open for public donations here.