Ms Macklin has pledged an emergency cash fund of £100,000 to assist the communities closest to her heart and has arranged for these meals to be delivered to those who need them most in partnership with local food supplier Braehead Foods and Kilmarnock-based charity Centrestage.

It is expected that up to 1,400 meals will be delivered every week from now on, meaning that partnership will be able to maintain deliveries for up 14 weeks.

Each pack will be made up of ingredients from local suppliers and will include a portion of fresh homemade soup, a homemade protein meal, morning rolls and a pint of milk.

The Lift Up Your Hearts fund was set up when Marie saw first-hand how the coronavirus pandemic is directly affecting the community of her home town, Kilmarnock, and to encourage businesses and their local communities to come together through this crisis.

Marie Macklin CBE is founder and executive chair of the HALO Urban Regeneration Company. The HALO, the first phase of which is currently under construction in Kilmarnock, will create a net-zero carbon commercial, educational, cultural, leisure and lifestyle quarter in the town, fuelled by renewable energy.

Ms Macklin said: “It is a very proud day for not just me but everyone at the HALO to see so many people come together to support the Lift Up Your Hearts campaign which we hope will help local communities that need it the most during these unprecedented times.

“I’d like to thank the team at Braehead Foods and everyone at Centrestage for their support and dedication to making the first deliveries of these 20,000 meals happen so quickly. I am confident that together we will help as many people as possible get through these difficult times.”

Craig Stevenson, managing director at Braehead Foods, added: “When Marie called me to ask if we would be involved in this project I didn’t have to think about it; as a Kilmarnock business, it’s important for us to be able to support other local businesses, charities and the community at such a challenging time.”

Paul Mathieson, CEO at Centrestage, said: “We will do all that we can to support anyone across East Ayrshire that needs our help during these times. Please call us if you need any food or basic essentials or just want to chat with a member of our team. We’re all in this together.”

• Read all of our articles relating to COVID-19 here.