A very big thank you to everyone who supported this years Backpack Drive for children returning to school. The calls of help for backpack donations from organisations across the Algarve were answered with record support of the campaign, now in its 7th year.

The ‘World’s Biggest Coffee Morning’, held last Friday, is a major fund raiser across the UK for Macmillan nurses involving thousands of people making donations to the charity. This year a number of organisations held events here on the same day and two of them made donations to Madrugada to help it support people affected by life limiting illness.

Reluctantly the Madrugada management team has decided to close its Portimão charity shop. Research before its opening in March 2011 indicated that the location right in the centre of town on Rua Direita near the theatre was a good position. Since then, however, things have radically changed.

With its partners at Rotary International, members of the Rotary Club Estoi Palace International have just made a huge difference to hungry families across the Algarve.