A new centre offering "a cuppa and a listening ear" has opened in Cinderford.

Retired school teacher Gay Neep has spent six months recruiting and training a team of volunteers to open the One Place in Market Street.

The centre aims to gives a warm and friendly welcome and, if needed, will direct people to other organisations that can offer more practical help.

Gay and the volunteers are all committed members of the Forest of Dean Community Church.

They expect to work with people needing help with family relationships, financial difficulties, bereavement, loneliness, depression and those needing help in many other ways.

She said: "I was amazed that wherever I seemed to go, people were excited to think that we would be starting this kind of place.

"This kind of encouragement helped push me on to make the dream a reality."

Gay helped pioneer the Forest's first centre for children with communication difficulties at Ruardean Church of England school and together with her husband almost single-handedly established a school for 500 children in Kenya.

The One Place will be open between Tuesday and Thursday from 10am until 2pm.