KNUTSFORD mums are hoping to ensure that every child in the town is wrapped up warmly this winter.

Gemma Jackson and three friends have launched Wrap Up Knutsford, a community coat scheme aimed at matching donated clothing with families in need.

Gemma, who helped set up a foodbank in Rochdale, came up with the Wrap Up idea after volunteering with The Welcome at Longridge, and will be running the scheme with the help of Lisa Benskin, Marie-Elise Worswick and Sadie Sherran.

The Wrap Up Knutsford Community Coat Scheme Facebook page was set up this week for people happy to donate items and those who might need certain items.

It already has more than 150 members, parents from Knutsford, and anyone who has an item to donate, or needs an item, can contact the group via the page or email wrapupknutsford@gmail.com

The group is seeking coats, hats, gloves, scarfs and shoes, and people are asked to hold onto the items until they are matched with specific requests.

At that point people will be asked to take them to Kids Allowed in Mobberley Road and a café in Knutsford, which have agreed to act as collection points.

Donated items will be quarantined there for 72 hours and washed, although the scheme’s organisers would appreciate it if people were able to wash items before taking them to the collection points.

Marie-Elise said the scheme was aimed at supporting parents who may struggle to buy winter clothes for their children because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the recession.

She added that some charity shops weren’t accepting donations of clothes because of quarantine rules, which was one of the reasons, along with the need for storage space, that The Welcome was not running such a scheme this year.

She said: “We don’t want any child thinking they will be heading into the next school term being cold. We are aiming the scheme at children up to the age of 18, and are also asking if people could donate old school coats.

“We don’t want items people are happy to donate to be dropped off, but would like people to keep hold of them until someone wants an item being donated, when they will be asked to take it to a drop-off location, where it can be collected.”