Click here to tell us of any charity you are knitting for that would welcome help from other knitters

Here are some projects currently involved in raising money through Knitting for Charity

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RNLI: Yellow Wellie Challenge - update

We've just heard from Deirdre Nelson one of our Knitting Artists that £1700 was raised through the sale of knitted fish. Excellent news!

Click here to read about the Yellow Wellie Challenge

Click here to read about Alison Murray's current project to raise money for the RNLI

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The Eden Project: Community Blankets

Click on images to view full size	Images of knitters who have contributed to the project so far

At Eden they are celebrating the annual winter theme 'Time of Gifts'. In a specially made Tavern 'The Pool of Plenty' they have a wishing pool, tell wonderful old tales, play the tree of knowlegde quiz and sit & knit community blankets.

Carla Wentink from The Eden Project is crocheting 2 meter strips of narrow knitting into blankets while you can add more stitches onto the 40 strips they already have. Carla says: "The instant feel of community as we sit and knit is warm and wonderful, information and stories are shared and every stitch counts!"
Come to the Tavern on Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sundays between 1-3.30pm, from 29 November to Saturday 3 January 2009. (Eden is closed on 24 + 25 December)

Click here for further details

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East Surrey Hospital: Neo Natal Unit

Pat Gunn knits for her local neo natal unit and needs other knitters to help knit tiny garments, size 12” chest, hats, bootees (no ribbons) and knitted blankets.

Click here to contact Pat if you can help, or send garments to: Sister in charge, Neo natal Unit, East Surrey Hospital, Redhill, Surrey

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Oxfam Maternal Mortality Campaign: Next Stage

We need your help and enthusiasm once more, for the next part of the campaign. It’s not over yet…we intend to raise even more awareness with the squares you’ve knitted!
Oxfam has over 14,000 squares from knitters all over the UK and beyond and we want to sew these together into big blankets so they can be displayed in each region of the UK and raise more awareness of the issue of maternal mortality, especially in the run up to International Women's Day in March. After the exhibitions the blankets will be sold in Oxfam shops and at festivals, with the money raised going towards Oxfam's work to fight poverty.

If you’re part of a group that would be interested in sewing together a bunch of these squares please get in touch!

How To Get Involved:

Click here to contact Alice Delemare and send details of your name, group name (example: knitting circle/community group/Girl Guides) an address, the number of blankets you are willing to sew together (each blanket will be 48 squares large). You will be sent a bundle of squares and instructions on how to sew them into a blanket.

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Woodland Trust: Winter Tree Hunt

The Woodland Trust is trying to raise awareness of The Ancient Tree Hunt through knitting.
 
The Ancient Tree Hunt is a project that aims to map individual tree records across the country. The Trust is organising a winter knitting campaign to knit scarves which represent a 1.5m hug, which is a standard measure to record the girth of a tree.
 
Click here for more information about The Ancient Tree Hunt and free patterns for scarves and gloves

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Charities Advisory Trust: Christmas Knit-In

From 10th – 24th December 2008, the Charities Advisory Trust will be holding a 'Knit In' at The Oxo Gallery on London’s South Bank. A team of keen volunteers will knit scarves, socks and other winter warmers for cold people around the world to include children and old people in former Soviet Union, children in Rwanda, displaced people in Africa (including Sudan), families in fuel poverty in the UK.

Can you spare a few hours (or even a few days) to join us at the Knit In? Great company and lots of fun is guaranteed- and all wool and needles will be supplied. Or if you’re not able to join us but would like to contribute to the project, why not help by donating wool or needles?

Join us Monday-Sunday: 11.00am-6.00pm (8.00pm on Thursdays)

Venue: The Oxo Gallery, Bargehouse Street, South Bank, London SE1 9PH

Click here to contact Lucy for more information

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Alison Murray Launches Her Latest Funding Raising Project On ukhandknitting.com

	Alison's picture of life 'Above And Below The Waves'	Life under the Sea

Not content with the thousands of pounds she has raised through "The World's Largest Christmas Tree" and more recently "The Gingerbread House" in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, Alison Murray has now set her sights on raising money to train a person to man a Lifeboat for a year. Aptly named "Above and Below The Waves" she is calling on all knitters to help knit items for this Project.

Alison writes:
"We are hoping to construct a tunnel that will make it possible to walk under the sea, while above there will be rocks, a lighthouse, boats, beach etc. As this is a more complex project we are still working on the technical details and because of this the completion will be in 2010. However, we can start knitting and crocheting now and the following patterns are a rough guide to what we may need. As before there are simple patterns for rectangles and SQUARES, fish and coral but feel free to improvise and make shells, starfish, seaweed etc.Because of the theme we are aiming to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). The project is already booked for a national tour in 2010 – 2011 and we will keep you posted."

Click here for patterns fish and coral. If you have any suitable patterns, please get in touch

Click here to contact Alison for further information

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Oxfam Maternal Mortality Campaign Says 'Thank You'

This is just to say a huge thank you to everyone who has been involved in this campaign!

For the last six months, knitters from towns, cities and villages from around the UK have been tirelessly clicking their needles, making knitted squares for our giant, knitted petition, and demanding decent healthcare for mums in poor countries.

We’d like to say a huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who took part in the campaign. You helped keep the pressure on in the run up to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit, and subsequently world leaders announced a raft of measures to tackle maternal mortality.

You helped put the issue of maternal mortality at the top of the agenda at the UN meetings, and if the promises of money and action confirmed in New York are delivered, it will help save the lives of 10 million mothers and newborn babies over the next 7 years.

We’ve been simply overwhelmed by your enthusiasm for the campaign - more than 14,000 knitted patches were made by knitters in every nook and cranny of the UK - and so we’ll be in touch again with the next few months to let you know how you can keep clicking your needles against poverty.

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RNLI: Yellow Wellie Challenge

The RNLI are asking 'creative' people to raise money to support the training of one RNLI crew member, in Scotland, for a year.

Deirdre Nelson one of our Knitting Artists took up a knitting residency earlier this year at Taigh Chearsabagh museum and arts centre in the Outer Hebrides. In Uist over 70 members of the community knitted fish to be exhibited with Deidre's work. Now the fish are to be auctioned and the proceeds will go to the Yellow Wellie Challenge.
The auction will take place on Friday 5th December 2008.

Click here for more details about the Yellow Wellie Challenge

Click here to see the fish in the auction

Click here to contact Sarah Macintyre the educational access officer for Taigh-Chearsabhagh

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Wallace & Gromit’s Children’s Foundation: 'Wallace & Gromit's Great British Tea Party' Friday 5th December 2008

Help Us Knit The World's Largest Tea Cosy Click on image to view full size

This new annual fundraising event takes place on Friday 5th December 2008, when over 100,000 people across the UK are expected to take part by joining or holding a tea party in their area and making a donation to the charity. Created in 2003, the Children’s Foundation raises funds to improve the quality of life for children in hospitals and hospices across the UK. Money raised from the Great British Tea Party will benefit more than 20 hospitals and hospices in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

IKnitLondon have taken on the challenge to set a new world record for the biggest ever hand knitted Tea Cosy and they need your help. All you need to do is to knit strips, 6" wide (approx. 28 stitches), in any colour you like, any pattern and as long and you can manage.Please use double knit yarn and 4mm needles.

Send your knitted strip by Friday 17th November to: IKnitLondon, 106 Lower Marsh, Waterloo, London, SE1 7AB

Click here for more information

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The Children's Society: 'The Big Stitch Campaign'

Children's Society Logo	The Children's Society volunteer Bryan, learns to knit	Margaret Newton from Nailsea, knitted 5.5m last year and raised £303 last year

GET KNITTING FOR CHILDHOOD!

The Children’s Society is calling on all knitters to make a real difference for runaway children this winter by knitting a kilometre long scarf.

The Children’s Society are attempting to create 1 kilometre of knitting, 100,000 centimetres to represent 100,000 children and young people who run away from home each year. By getting sponsored by the centimetre or inch, the money raised by knitters contributing sections of the kilometre long scarf, will help us continue our vital work with these children. 100,000 children run away or are forced to leave home every year. Some are thrown out, many are fleeing family conflict or abuse, and others are finding school so difficult that they can’t bear to return. Every centimetre of this massive scarf will represent just one child who will run away this year.

What do knitters need to do?

* Knit a section of the scarf, 20cm wide, any colour, any stitch and send it to us to be joined on to the growing scarf, by 13 January 2009, traditionally the coldest day of the year
* Get sponsored by the centimetre or inch, a sponsor form is available on the website to download

Click here for further information from the website and see the scarf grow on our online knitometer or call 0845 300 1128

Age Concern: Innocent Drinks

Needles at the ready: Innocent drinks are running their Big Knit campaign again this year to help raise money for Age Concern to keep older people warm over the winter. They're looking for knitters to knit lots of little hats for their smoothie bottles, for each one sold they and Sainsbury's will give 50p to Age Concern. Last year over 400,000 hat were knitted raising £200,000 for Age Concern and this year they're aiming for a million hats! New for this year is a Big Knit blog and fantastic new hat patterns for you to try each week providing plenty of inspiration. There will be competitions and hat patterns from the well-known hand knit designers in all the main knitting magazines due out in September.

NB: Please send in any contributions by Friday 10th October 2008

Click here for more information

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The Jenny Chant Appeal: World's Longest Pink Scarf

Jenny knitting her record breaking scarf	Part of the World's Longest Pink Scarf

Jenny Chant is planning to knit the World's Longest Pink scarf to raise awareness of cancer and would like your help. After the record has been broken, the scarves will be auctioned off to raise funds, the remaining scarves will be either used as scarves or sewn together to make blankets, to warm and comfort those who need them most. The proceeds will go to impoverished people who cannot afford to go for regular checkups or treatment for cancer.

Click here for more information and to learn how you can help

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Oxfam Update

Oxfam has requested that we remind all our knitters helping to knit 9inch squares for blankets, that the date for sending them in has been extended to the end of August.

Please send squares with your name address and email to: Sarah Blakemore, Oxfam campaigns, 47 Park Square East, Leeds LS21 2NL by 31st August 2008.

"You can take part, and turn your knitting needles into poverty fighting needles by creating a patch for a giant baby blanket – a 'visual petition' we'll hand in to world leaders in September 2008."

Click here for more information

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Little Lamb Charity Blanket Project: Update

Lindsay and Maureen Hall have written with an update about the blankets you have been helping them to knit:

"In the 7 months we have been running, we have made 234 blankets and distributed them to 10 different charities, hospices and hospitals"

Click here for more information

Click here for Lindsay's new website and here for new email address if you can help

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Funsani Hospice In Zambia

Kathy Henry has just returned from a 3 week visit to a hospice/orphanage in Kitwe in Zambia. Her church has been involved in supporting the work of Funsani Hospice (charity no 1112816) for a number of years now. They work with children who have been orphaned through AIDS and as well as the 16 children resident at the hospice and support about 120 children in the nearby township of Kwacha. While she was visiting, she spent time with the children in the community and the 9 or so women who look after them.  She has returned determined to try to help.  While there she learnt that many of these children have little or no bedding and as the winter nights can be really cold she has decided to take on the task of trying to get blankets organised for the children. Kathy taught some of the women to knit and will be sending some wool out to them – they are very willing to try to help themselves.  Now she has returned, she is trying to get as many people involved in knitting blankets as possible.  

Click here to contact Kathy if you can help knit a blanket or if you are able to donate any wool or read Kathy's blog here

Click here for further information

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Algerian Action

Examples Of Donations Received

Algerian Action is a small not for profit project group which helps to support needy babies and children in Algeria by providing them with clothes, toys and other essentials. In addition to general knitting needs of hats, cardigans and jumpers Algerian Action have recently launched a 'blanket appeal' requesting both baby blankets and knitted squares which can be made up into blankets by volunteer knitters.

Click here to contact Emma if you can help

Click here for more information

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Money for Madagascar

Hococo, the lemur	Hococo and friends

 

Hococo, the knitted lemur has been raising money to help save lives in Madagascar. Commissioned from internationally renowned knitted toy designer Alan Dart, the lemur pattern was given free to customers of a major shoe company, who were then encouraged to knit, sell or raffle the toy. Money raised is being sent direct to the Money for Madagascar charity and, with over £1,000 raised so far, ten babies and children have already received life-saving surgery. The company would like to extend the offer of a free pattern to anyone who would like to knit the lemur and help raise funds for children in Madagascar.

Click here if you can help and would like to request a free pattern

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Oxfam

Millions of mums in poor countries get low-quality health care, Oxfam is asking supporters to help campaign for better healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth by knitting squares for a giant baby blanket, where each square represents a newborn baby, left needlessly without a mother because of lack of healthcare. These squares will be joined together and handed into the UK government in September.

Each square should be 9 inches in size and preferably made using double-knitting weight yarn, plain or patterned. You can use any type of yarn, provided that it is washable. Crochet Squares are also very welcome.

Please send squares with your name address and email to: Sarah Blakemore, Oxfam campaigns, 47 Park Square East, Leeds LS21 2NL by 1st August 2008.

Click here for more information

Click here for ideas of how to knit your square

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The Mirasol Project

The Mirasol Project will do something to redress the balance between rich and poor nations. Peru is a nation of 29 million people with a high level of social inequality, with the poor rural Quechua-speaking communities high in the Andes being particularly disadvantaged. The situation is not helped by the fact that since 1980 Peru has experienced periods of political unrest which have particularly affected the already disadvantaged Quechua-speaking communities. A survey undertaken in 2002 rated Peru last of 41 nations in terms of educational provision and the people of the Puno region, where the ranch is situated, have one of the lowest levels of health and education in Peru. The illiteracy rate is 95 per cent. Families live just at subsistence level in mud huts that lack plumbing and electricity and have only an open fireplace for warmth. As a result of this survey, the Peruvian government has decided to prioritise the development of the rural areas of the sierra on the national agenda.

The Natural Dye Studio in Suffolk has launched a 'Toilet Dolly Competition' to help raise money for The Mirasol Project. There are two categories; Tasteless and Tasteful. There are prizes for the best and all the dollies will be included in a charity auction on November 1st 2008. Entries must be received by 31st August, the address to send them to is:
The Natural Dye Studio, Moors Farm, School Lane, Hollesley, Woodbridge, Suffolk. IP12 3RF

Click here for full details

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Burundi Bears, update

Gren Burgess has sent us a further update to tell us how much more they have achieved with the help of funds from the sale of knitted Brundi Bears:

Toilet block with magnificent view	Classroom block	Classroom block

Click here to read about the current school being built

Click here to read more about the project

Click here to contact Gren Burgess for details of where to send your completed bears

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Save The Children

Click on image to read full details

A woolly hat can mean the difference between life and death for a newborn baby as they can't regulate their own body temperature. We are asking everyone to knit baby bonnets and send them in to Save the Children with an action card (part of the knit kit). We will then send the hats to those places where they are needed, and the action cards will be sent to Gordon Brown.

Save the Children has called on Paul O'Grady to learn how to knit and to get others to learn to knit as part of their biggest ever campaign to help save children's lives.

NB: Please send in any contributions by Saturday 21st October 2008

Click here for details about how you can help and how to download a special 'Knit Kit'

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The Sailor's Society: New Woolly Hat Competition

Click on image to view full size	Competition Logo	Ship's Captain's Hat	Bee Hats

The Sailor's Society is running a competition to design a woolly hat. To enter you need to register before Friday 30th May and all entries must be received by Friday 1st August 2008. The design brief for the hat is "to create something outrageous, humorous, witty - we want to exhibit hats with attitude!"

All entries will be displayed at The Knitting and Stitching Shows this year - NEC Birmingham, (September); at Alexandra Palace in London (October) and in the International Halls in Harrogate (November)

Click here for further information

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Warm Woolies

Malgosia Colquhoun knits for 'Warm Woolies', a charity for babies and children mostly in Russia and Kazakhstan. Because of the climate, they accept wool and wool-rich fibres (85% and above) only. Malgosia requests that knitters send donations of yarn, for which she will refund the postage.

Click here to contact Malgosia

Click here to learn more about Warm Woolies

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Wallace & Gromit's Children's Foundation

John Lewis in Glasgow is currently fundraising in aid of Glasgow's Yorkhill Childrens Hospital by knitting and crocheting blanket squares. Basic patterns for beginners have been provided and they are organising "Big Sew-in Days" to help it all come together.

A "Big Sew-in Day" is planned for Saturday 26th April, coffee and light refreshments will be available and a large turnout of knitters, crocheters alike are expected.

Click here to contact Jane Galbraith if you would like to take part

Click here to read about this fundraising

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Great Ormond Street: The Knitted Gingerbread House - Update:

Inside the Gingerbread House

News From Alison Murray:

"The house has proved to be a great success at it's showings in Exeter, Harrogate and Cardiff during Autumn 2007. We have raised about £15,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital so far. We have just been to Brighton and are about to go to Glasgow and Birmingham with the house. The Gingerbread house is due to be featured on the Martha Stewart Show in the US, due to go out on Monday 25th February."

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Project Peru

Sheila Steward knits jumpers, hats and blankets  for a the British registered charity "Project Peru". She would very much other knitters to become involved. Any knitting suitable for children would be greatly appreciated. The people of Peru love bright colours, so garments of many colours (odd balls) are welcome.

Click here to find out more about "project Peru" and where to send knitted items

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Hope Now Southampton

Julia Benton is going out to the Ukraine to help on a widows camp run by the charity Hope Now which is based in Southampton. She went out last year and was asked to run a knitting group for 60 ladies. She is desperate for donations of needles and yarn.

Click here to contact Julia if you can help

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The Finite River Knit

Stephanie Ingham is part of a group organising a FINITE RIVER knit to make a giant river for an exhibition called ' FINITE?' to be held at Hadlow College in Kent from 29th March to 6th April 2008 to raise awareness of finite resourses. The project is part of a new village sustainability initiative which is also supported by Kent County Council and Hadlow Agricultural College in Kent. The college is hosting the art exhibition to advertise this sustainability initiative. The group has been named the HADLOW CARBON GROUP and this exhibition will be the first of many projects they hope to undertake.
Afterwards the sections will be sewn into blankets for the homeless.
 
The group requests donations of blue, green and brown yarn, needles and knitters, and, or donations of blue, green or brown rectangles 4 inches (10 centimetres ) wide x any length.

Click here to contact Stephanie if you can help

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Little Lamb Charity Blanket Project

Lindsay Hall lives in Glasgow and knits and crochets blankets for various charities in the UK and America. She is visually impaired, but manages a huge output of items making full use of her time. She has set up a website to coordinate and distribute donations of knitted and crocheted squares, which she hopes visitors to this site will help her with.

One of Lindsay's Blankets

Click here for Lindsay's dedicated Charity Blanket website

Click here to contact Lindsay if you would like to help

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The Sailor's Society: New Woolly Hat Campaign For 2008

Click here for further details of how you can help

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Early Angels Project

Raynor Gellatly runs a charity set up to encourage knitters to knit for premature babies at their local hospitals. They are looking for new volunteers to send knitted baby garments or small soft toys.

Click here for full details on their website

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