Mothers and children are to receive free vitamins and some families will be given financial help to buy healthy groceries.

Cumbria County Council’s Healthy Start programme has received the funding which will allow some families to collect up to £8.50 a week to buy milk, fruit, vegetables and pulses.

The free vitamin scheme will be available to mothers and children from 0 to 4.

In Workington, the vitamins will be available from the library on a Monday and Wednesday from 9am to 6pm and Tuesday, Thursday and Friday until 5pm.

Aspatria’s Local Link, in Market Square, will be able to distribute vitamins from 9.30am to noon and from 1pm to 5pm on a Wednesday.

Cockermouth library will be the venue for local residents who can collect the vitamins from 10am to 4pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, from 10am to 5pm on Wednesday and from 10am until 2pm on Saturday.

In Keswick, the vitamins will be distributed from 9.30am to noon and from 1pm to 5pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

The library in Maryport will be open from 9.30am to 5pm from Monday to Friday and from 9.30am to 12.30pm on Saturdays. Maryport families can also go to Family Action (Family Centre) on Ennerdale Road from 9am to 5pm Monday to Thursday and from 9am to 4.30pm on Fridays.

The Seaton library will also be used. It will operate from 1pm to 5pm on Monday, 10am to 5pm on Tuesday and Thursday and from 10am to 1pm on Fridays.

Silloth Local Link, in the Discovery Centre, will be available from 10am to 4pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and from 10am to 1pm on Saturday.

Wigton will have two centres from which the vitamins will be available. The first is the library which will be open from 9.30am to noon and 1pm to 5pm on Monday, Tuesday and Friday. The second venue is the Family Centre on Wampool Road. This will be open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Thursday and from 9am to 4.30pm on Fridays.