TEN years ago a craft group was formed for ladies of East and West Worlington where they have since made 50 tapestry kneelers and other work for their two churches, with the latest work now hanging in a parish hall.

The ladies have met once a month at the home of a member since they first got together in February 2001 to make tapestry kneelers for West Worlington Parish Church.

Foot and mouth disease stopped the meetings for a time, but the ladies got going again, working on their own designs for the kneelers, several of which copied the roof bosses. Others show animals and plants around the area and some of its buildings.

In West Worlington parish church there is an amazing curtain tie back, where one Craft Group member has made a long tapestry showing the three cottages at the entrance to the churchyard.

In East Worlington Parish Church their work includes a big tapestry pelmet above the curtain to the tower and beautiful tapestry cushions.

The beginning of this year saw the end of their projects when their second collage panel was finished. Both were hung in the East Worlington Parish Hall at the end of February.

All this work was made possible through a National Lottery Awards for All grant which enabled the Craft Group to be set up.

The Group hope the two panels might help the acoustics in the Parish Hall, one of the reasons for their doing the panels - but there has not yet been an event there to test them!

A wonderful book has been put together of photographs of their work with brief notes about the creator of each piece.

The youngest worker was a boy of 12 whose grandmother finished the kneeler. She was then aged nearly 80. The oldest person to do a complete kneeler is now 76 and still sewing.

The two collage panels, each showing 12 pictures of buildings and life at Worlington, were sewn onto the padded backing by hand at various Craft Group sessions.

The Craft Group is now looking at crochet work and making rag rugs. Just keep an eye on progress the next time there is a craft display at Worlington.

S Read