The bulldozers have demolished much of the west end as we know it. But local residents have been working with Search to help build it up again in wool

Across Benwell and Scotswood people are busy knitting, crocheting and working with wool in other ingenious ways to recreate buildings and scenes from the west end past and present

Woolly items currently in production include

• A woolly picture of the view south across the river – made by a group of women and girls in Pendower
• A cross-stitch model of St Margaret’s Church, Scotswood, built by a group of church-goers
• A model of Benwell Nature Park created by members of the Benwell Hall Drive Knit and Natter group

Knitting the community together

The Woolly West buildings and figures will feature in a new film being made by local film-maker Julie Ballands in collaboration with Search. This will be a short animated film – using local voices and woolly actors and scenes. In it local people will tell their personal stories and experiences of the changes they have seen in the area.

The film is being made as part of the Northern Film and Media Capture08 community documentary scheme and will be shown on television on the Community Channel in the autumn. Search will also host a local event to show the film