A COMMUNITY mask tree project that started in Amesbury a few weeks ago is now being adopted all across the country.

Members of Salisbury Makers Hub have spent the past few months sewing scrubs for NHS staff.

But since the government advised the use of cloth face coverings in crowded spaces, volunteer sewers have redirected their efforts towards producing masks.

In order for them to be widely and easily accessible, mask trees made using coat stands, ladders or actual trees have popped up all across the local area.

And thanks to the power of social media, communities elsewhere in the country have now got involved too, to replicate the idea closer to home.

Naomi Betts, 46, who first started the project, said: "I've got friends who are trying to instigate it where they live.

"We now have trees in Liverpool, Colchester and Oxford and more are being set up in Woking and North Wales so we're really starting to spread."

An interactive map is now available for anyone to check where their nearest tree is. So far, 31 trees have been added to it.

'Sew your own' packs with instructions for people wanting to sew their own mask are also proving popular and around £2,000 has been raised through voluntary donations to support local causes.

"It's been a real learning curve, learning how to use all the Facebook groups, I feel really connected talking with people in a completely different part of the country that are doing the same thing as me.

"I'm hoping to get lots of trees all over the UK."

Anyone who wishes to look at the map can do so at https://bit.ly/3exCDso

Masks are available for free, however a £2 donation to cover the costs of materials is suggested.