A kind-hearted group of volunteers have knitted their way into this week’s Charity Champion top spot after raising over £13,000 for Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity.

The group of over 100 dedicated knitters spend their spare time creating beautiful handmade garments - including hats, cardigans, blankets and much more - all of which are donated to the 8,200 babies born at the women’s hospital every year.

A long-standing tradition at the hospital, knitting donations have been supporting families with new-born babies for decades. It ensures that every new-born baby is kept warm and cosy until they can go home.

As well as gifting their creations to families and babies at the hospital, the volunteer team – aged 25 – 95 - also began selling their knitting to help raise vital funds for the hospital’s charity. In the past year alone, they’ve raised an incredible £13,017 which has gone on to directly support the hospital’s Maternity Department and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Volunteer team leader, Margaret Keeling, said: “I am so proud of our incredible team of volunteers for all their hard work producing the high quality items which we need to ensure that every baby born at Birmingham Women’s Hospital gets their very own hand-knitted hat to keep them cosy and warm.

“Knitting is our hobby and something we all absolutely love to do, so to combine that with helping the hospital and new families is a win-win situation for all involved.”

Serena Daw, Public Fundraising Manager at Birmingham Women’s Hospital Charity, added: “We’ve been blown away by the continuous hard work of our wonderful knitting group. They’ve made a huge difference to every one of our 8,000+ babies born here each year with their generosity and kindness. 

“If you’re a dedicated knitter or crocheter and interested in getting involved in our volunteer knitting programme or helping out at our sales, do get in touch with our fundraising team by visiting bwh.org.uk, emailing [email protected] or calling 0121 335 8040."