THE organiser of a sewing group who started making scrubs for James Cook University Hospital has seen volunteers swell from around 70 to almost 1,000 in less than a fortnight.

Charlotte Roche, from Marske, near Redcar, was moved to create the group to sew together much-needed scrubs for doctors and nurses fighting coronavirus at the North East hospital – and said she has been overwhelmed with the support.

Since The Northern Echo and Darlington and Stockton Times ran Mrs Roche's story earlier this month, she has been inundated with requests from both sewing enthusiasts and those who wanted to help with delivering the scrubs.

Mrs Roche said: "It has just been amazing. We started with a group of around 70 on our Facebook For the Love of Scrubs page, and now there is about 720 with another 150 who don't use Facebook.

"It has become a real community of us. I've had people reporting to me that it is helping their mental health because it is giving them a task, and we are working together to help our local NHS. Now there are people from all over the region. I just want to say a massive thank you to everyone involved because it is so amazing."

Mrs Roche delivered 88 sets of scrubs to James Cook Hospital yesterday, and 40 bags of headbands with buttons for mask straps to be secured, to prevent straps hurting the ears.

She added: "We have bought around 2,000 metres of fabric, using local suppliers where possible, and have delivered around 1,000 metres worth of it so far.

"We are now also making items for Holme House Prison, and for individual departments within James Cook Hospital, as well as doctors and nurses coming to us personally after hearing about what we are doing.

"It just feels so lovely to be helping. I've been so busy I don't have time to worry about what is being said in the news about coronavirus."

She added: "Lots of people have experiences of how James Cook staff have helped their families over the years, and this just feels like a way of giving back."

Find Charlotte Roche on Facebook for ways to help.