TALENTED and dedicated members of a craft group have produced a magnificent textile artwork capturing the heritage of their village.

The wall-hanging, called “Spirit of Neasham”, has been unveiled after being lovingly designed and created by local women under the guidance of textile artist Lone Helliwell.

A grand unveiling event took place in Neasham Reading Room, with members of the local community treated to afternoon tea.

The Neasham Craft Group was set up in early 2017 with funding from the River Tees Rediscovered Landscape Partnership, which is a National Lottery Heritage Fund project.

One of the aims of the partnership is to bring the heritage of communities on the River Tees to life, by encouraging people to learn new heritage skills and pass them on to future generations.

Tina Murray, Spirit of Neasham Co-ordinator, said: “What better way to fulfil these aims than by creating a permanent artistic piece with new-found skills? Spirit of Neasham now hangs proudly in the Reading Room for all to enjoy and provides a fitting legacy for future generations.

“New friendships have been made and such is the wonderful creative talent within the group, members are now delivering their own workshops to the group. It just goes to prove that it’s never too late to start a creative journey.”

The group is now self-funded, meets monthly, and The Radcliffe Trust has now provided further funding for the group to continue learning new skills.

Professional crafts people deliver a huge variety of workshops for participants to learn new skills such as felting, leathercraft, fused glass, stained glass, green woodwork, spinning, braiding, and mosaics.

Neasham Craft Group members who contributed to the project: Joy Laverack, Phyllis Jowett, Adele Minto, Corinne Scott, Lone Helliwell, Betty Dempsey, Judith Hobson, Susanna Baker, Kath Whitfield, Helen Crute, Sarah Hadden, Josie Marsden, Irene Slater, Lizzie Blundell, Sarah Graham, and Sophie Lunt.