Local health professionals in a lunchtime knitting group have been busy making hats to keep people warm this winter.

NHS Southport and Formby CCG and NHS South Sefton clinical commissioning group (CCG) staff knitted the hats for Sefton Older Persons Enabling Resource and Action (OPERA) to go in to their winter warmer packs.

Sefton OPERA decided to put the packs together following the bad snow a couple of years ago, to give out to the older, more vulnerable people so that they could stay in the safety of their own home and not have to venture out in bad weather. A selection of goods are provided each year which can include; helpful emergency phone numbers, dried food, tinned food, fresh veg, recipes, blankets, hot water bottles, hand warmers and knitted hats and scarves which are delivered to the vulnerable elderly living on their own.

As well as hats, staff at the CCGs’ also made twiddlemuffs which are specially knitted hand muffs that have items such as buttons, ribbons or textured fabric attached to keep dementia patients who may become agitated busy with their hands. These will be donated separately to the packs by Sefton OPERA to people with dementia in nursing homes across Sefton.

Vikki Martlow, organisational manager at Sefton OPERA said: “We usually give out about 150 packs throughout Sefton to older and vulnerable people and it is through kind donations from people like the CCGs and our ‘In Stitches’ group who also knitted hats that we are able to continue to provide them again this year. I would like to personally thank the CCGs and their staff who are very talented for providing both hats and twiddlemuffs for us. A big thank you to them all.”

Tina Ewart, locality manager at the CCGs said: “We really enjoyed knitting the hats and twiddlemuffs during lunchtimes; it was a great opportunity for people to learn a new skill whilst doing something to help the elderly people of Sefton this winter. We are going to continue with the group so that we can be prepared to do the same again next winter.”

Sefton OPERA is a charitable voluntary organisation working within the borough of Sefton with older people. The project began in 1999 using complimentary therapies to enhance the wellbeing of the older person. Since the project began, they have worked with over 27,000 people establishing a successful track record.