Knitting together beats loneliness and helps charity
BLANKETS GO TO REFUGE FOR
MEMBERS of a group that has been working since October 2015 to help reduce isolation and loneliness in older people in Leicester have been knitting together to help a homeless charity.
Leicester Ageing Together’s (LAT) partnership has reached 6,000 older people, with almost half aged over 80. LAT is part of Ageing Better, a programme set up by the National Lottery Community Fund.
In March, 43 LAT members joined a Zoom meeting with Liz Green, a member of the Framework Knitters Company, which is based in the city, to learn about its Knit for Community initiative.
Many had never knitted before while others were seasoned knitters . Thanks to a donation from one of the members, wool and needles were ordered and by the end of May two blankets and more than 100 knitted squares had been completed.
Some members had knitted one square and others more than 12.
Bharti Mistry, community connector for LAT, said: “It was fantastic to see the sense of achievement when we met to collect the squares, and our involvement with the project should continue to grow so that we can continue helping charities.
“We are very grateful to Hazel from the FWK for sewing up our blankets for us and we hope to soon be sewing up our own squares.”
The blankets have gone to Action Homeless in Leicester, to help brighten up refuge accommodation and make the individual rooms more home from home, according to James, at the charity.
Knitting has helped members of LAT and comments by their members include: “I enjoy knitting and have made lots of friends. I feel I am doing something for charity, giving something back to the community”;
HOMELESS
“I used to sleep in the afternoon and used to think who shall I phone? but since I started knitting it keeps me busy. I don’t get bad thoughts any more,” said another.
“My daughter has arthritis and since starting the knitting her arthritis feels better. Her movement is better, which is a big benefit”, said one while another member added: “I did not even know how to hold the nee
dles and wool. I started off with 10 stitches and just leant to knit. Two weeks later I proudly went and gave my first square to add to the blanket.
“Now I am getting better and am doing the triangle method and getting perfect.”
If you would like to take part in the Knit for Community project, contact Bharti Mistry via: