Thousands of knitted poppies go on display at Lepe Country Park ahead of Remembrance Day

THOUSANDS of knitted poppies have gone on display at Lepe Country Park ahead of Remembrance Day.

The poppy wave was the idea of the country park’s events leader, Nicky White, who was inspired after seeing a similar display at the Tower of London.

The park's visitor services assistant Louise Payne created the wave, comprising more than 2,000 knitted poppies, after a plea was made on social media.

The knitting pattern was shared online, and offers of help soon came in from individuals and local groups.

A majority of the poppies came from the Waterside Veterans Coffee Club which had many already made and in storage after a previous installation.

After around one month there was enough donated to complete the wave, and Louise spent more than 50 hours compiling it, beginning in September.

Hampshire County Council's cabinet member for countryside, culture and communities, Cllr Russell Oppenheimer, said: "There is a strong connection to World War II in Lepe’s history. This is a great act of remembrance and a fantastic achievement.

"The end result is a stunning tribute to all those who fought in both world wars and all those who have served in the armed forces since and continue to do so today.

"On behalf of the county council I’d like to thank the staff at Lepe and the local community for all their hard work in creating it and to extend that thanks to all the support from the park’s visitors."

The display will remain in place at The Lookout until 14th November. It will then be taken to a meeting of the Waterside Veterans Coffee Club before it is stored ready for next year.