A LOCAL Women’s Institute showed off their hand-knitted ‘Trauma Teddies’ to the public earlier this month, teddies with an aim to be there for children during any traumatic experience.

The Odstock, Nunton and Bodenham Women’s Institute presented around 100 hand-made teddies to the Fire Services and The Bobby Van Trust on July 10, for them to be distributed to various departments in the fire and police services.

Trauma teddies were a initiative first introduced by Australia’s Red Cross in an attempt to calm children down if involved with any serious incident, and these furry friends have now taken over the world, the first trauma teddies bought to England by services in Northumberland.

Pins and Needles, a sub crafts group within the institute, organised the trauma teddy project for the Salisbury area, the group only forming a few years ago and yet taking it upon themselves to bring the teddies to life.

Former President of the Institute and member of Pins and Needles, Elizabeth Cutter said: “No one else is doing it in Salisbury at all, no one has even heard of trauma teddies and we simply thought, what a good idea.

“Members were getting involved stuffing the teddies and then Pins and Needles would stitch them up and add the faces.”

Trauma teddies are becoming a more and more essential addition to the services, not only to be a friend for children but for a good relationship to form between a distressed child and the police and fire services.

Elizabeth added: “In times of trauma it will give children something to hold onto.”