Sue Bond, who lives near Hawkshead, and fellow members of the Hawkshead and Outgate WI, are busy knitting teddy bears to send out to children caught up in the earthquake.

A project to knit bears to send to children in different parts of the world has been going on for around 25 years and Mrs Bond had already decided to ask the WI to join in before the Boxing Day disaster.

Now her idea has even more impetus, and she has found a charity willing to transport the bears.

"We have sent money but I wanted to do something that cost me time and effort.

"You never know, I thought for some of the women whose children receive these it would mean something to them, that someone on the other side of the world had taken time to knit them."

Mrs Bond is pleased with the response so far, with some people saying they have not knitted in years but will now take up their needles in a good cause.

A link to websites which feature knitting, machine knitting and crochet patterns for the bears can be found on the Westmorland Gazette's website www.thisisthelakedistrict.co.uk in the section for the tsunami, together with the address for the charity which will transport the bears.