Excess winter deaths in England and Wales amongst those aged 75 plus rose to over 25,000 in 2012/13, a statistic that has been branded “shameful” by charity, Age UK.
In an attempt to halt this ongoing increase, Age UK and drinks brand, Innocent, celebrate their tenth year running the Big Knit campaign to keep older people warm throughout winter.
Age UK provide older people with support and advice whilst campaigning across the UK on a broad range of topics associated with ageing including disability and mobility issues, benefits, care options and age discrimination.
Big Knit Campaign
This year’s Big Knit campaign has seen old and young people throughout the UK knitting hats small enough to fit on Innocent smoothie bottles. The bottles have been sold in all major supermarkets with 25p donated to Age UK for every bottle sold with a woolly hat.
Age UK organised various knitting groups for older people to get involved in the campaign which has helped the total of number of hats knitted reach a staggering 600,000. The Innocent bottles feature many fantastic hats from colourful bobble hats through to owl, sheep and even ice cream hats.
This year so far, a total of £250,000 has been raised. For those people who aren’t so confident in their knitting ability, there’s been an option to create a virtual woolly hat. Each virtual hat shared through social media sites raises 10p for Age UK.
Making a Difference
The money raised will be used in different ways including the provision of hot water bottles, blankets, hot meals and even funding social gatherings to get people out and about.
Douglas Lamont, marketing director at Innocent commented: “The Big Knit campaign couldn’t happen without the support of thousands of amazing people across the UK who take part and knit woolly hats to adorn Innocent smoothies each year.”
If you’d like to get involved, you can still send your hats to Innocent or you can make a donation of £3 by texting ‘knit’ to 70004.
