A community project feeding up to 30 homeless people every night is calling for help after its building was "ransacked" by vandals who destroyed equipment and food.

Volunteers with the Street Food Project run by Growing Links arrived at their building at 1, Guildhall Road in Penzance on Thursday morning to find the front door bashed in and the entire contents of the building broken or smashed.

Food had been ripped open and thrown around, and office furniture ripped apart or broken.

That night they were due to feed up to 30 homeless people with what, for many, would be their only meal that day.

Thanks to the dedication of the volunteers of the next four and hour hours, the building was still ready to welcome those in need that evening - but the actions of those responsible have been widely condemned.

Donated food was thrown around and ripped open

Donated food was thrown around and ripped open

Glennie Mckinley, one of the leads with the project, said: "This place is many people's lifeline for help, their only source of food and a warm drink on a nightly basis.

"We are feeding up to 30 homeless, seven days a week, and packing food pages for 800 people every week, and the figure is going up daily."

And speaking directly to the vandals, she added: "So you heartless sh*ts, you may think it was a laugh to do this, but I don’t."

A JustGiving fundraising page has been set up at www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/glennie-mckinley to help replace what was damaged, with donations of bags of food to replenish stocks also welcomed.

In particular the group is now looking for a new filing cabinet, office chair, printer, laptops and microwave, all of which were smashed.

Street Food Project is a hot meal service that operates seven nights a week, 365 days a year.

Many items were damaged and destroyed

Many items were damaged and destroyed

The volunteer-led service was created to support Penzance’s homeless and/or vulnerably housed, as well as families and individuals suffering from poverty.

Volunteers and supporters cook hearty and nutritious food nightly and use the meal service to engage with members of the community who can often feel marginalised by their circumstances.

Over dinner and a friendly chat, the team is able to offer support and advice by linking people up to other agencies in the local community.

Meals are available every evening between 6pm and 7pm.

The Street Food Project, working along volunteers from its Food Store branch, also put together shopping bags of store cupboard essentials for families or individuals in need.