CREDITON Town Square was recently “Yarn Bombed” by Christians Together in Crediton to raise awareness of food poverty both nationally and locally.

Local knitting groups, guide groups and individuals have recently been secretly knitting and sewing to create a display which they hoped would have a positive impact.

Local children made labels to hang around the display with various facts and figures on about food poverty including verses from the Bible that encourage and challenge us to care for the poor and speak out against injustice.

A team of people spent the evening of Friday, May 31 decorating the Town Square (with permission from Crediton Town Council and the Town Team).

An unexpected outcome was the excitement and enthusiasm the “yarn bombing“ generated from people of all ages. 

The intricacies of some of the knitting was truly amazing and extremely creative; fish and chips, liquorice allsorts, Battenburg cake, satsumas, aubergines and beautiful bunting and chains. Make sure you check it out!

What are the group highlighting? - A recent report from special rapporteur, Peter Alston, commissioned by the United Nations confirmed that "14 million people in the UK - a fifth of the population - live in poverty and 1.5 million people experienced destitution, meaning they had less than £10 a day after housing costs.

Despite official denials, Prof Alston said he had heard accounts of people choosing between heating their homes or eating, children turning up to school with empty stomachs, increased homelessness and food bank use, and "story after story" of people who had considered or attempted suicide.

For more information on the report; “Poverty in the UK is systematic and tragic” visit the website: www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-48354692 .

Crediton Foodbank Co-ordinator and Community Support Worker, Chris Parsons, explained: “This is the same picture we have at Crediton Foodbank and we hope that the ‘yarn bombing’ will just make people stop and think for a moment and particularly about the situation regarding Universal Credit; could you survive with no money for five weeks if you had no savings to fall back on?

“A huge thank you to everyone who got involved, the team who spent time setting it up and to Lauren Stacey, youth worker at the Methodist church, who came up with this idea after hearing the foodbank report following a particularly busy period.

“End Hunger UK will be promoting it on their national website and Radio Devon have interviewed the foodbank coordinator and tweeted photos which will raise Crediton’s profile as a great place to live with in a community that cares for each other.”