We’re thrilled to announce a brand-new charity partnership between Scottish Women’s Institutes and Home-Start UK. This year, we are inviting the generous and talented members of the SWI to create winter woollies for families in need right in their own communities.
You’re invited to knit or crochet hats in baby/toddler, child and adult sizes which will be gifted to families who may struggle to stay warm this winter.
Being a parent can be challenging, and sometimes life-changing events or adverse circumstances can quickly become overwhelming. Home-Start was founded in 1973 by a woman who knew that children and families could best be helped by local people offering friendship, sharing difficulties, and passing on home skills. We think we make a perfect partnership!
Make You will create a beautiful, segmented hat with twisted cable detail in just 110-220m of DK weight yarn using any colour you wish. Louise Pritchard from Bow Fiddle Yarns has created fabulous free patterns for both knitting and crochet, exclusive to SWI members, just for this project. You’ll find the downloadable patterns below. Feel free to knit any hat you like, though!
Deliver The hats will be for a family in your local area as they will be distributed from your local Home-Start office. When your hats are ready, arrange to deliver them to your local Home-Start office (by post, or drop them off in person*). To see details of all participating offices and when they can accept deliveries, please download the guide below. We have suggested an office based on your Federation, but you’ll know where you are closest to!
*Please contact the office to let them know to expect the items within the delivery window as many have limited storage space.
Participating Home-Start Offices
Promote Email membership@theswi.org.uk to let us know when you have dropped off your donation. We’ll keep a tally so we can share with you all just how much our members have made a difference across the nation. And why not take photos and share your beautiful “stitched with love” hats online for everyone to enjoy? Post pics to your SWI Facebook page, share your progress in your group chats, and help us get the word out there. Use #StitchedbySWI or tag us using @ScottishWomensInstitutes so we can see all your hard work!