Fifteen years ago, Jackie Hadfield and eight other volunteers from Francis House Children’s Hospice had the novel idea to knit and sell chicks to raise funds for the hospice. The chicks were so popular that in 2012 the charity began an annual appeal calling for knitters everywhere to help make a fluffy flock. Since then, the Easter tradition has really grown and last year the hospice received a record-breaking 8,452 chicks, raising a total of £11,133.
“Some supporters chose to knit and sell the chicks themselves, posting the funds raised to the hospice, so there were even more chicks involved than the 8,452 that we saw,” says Rachel Astill, Francis House fundraiser and Chick Knit coordinator. “I’ve heard from ladies who used to enjoy knitting but had no one to…