A garment that began life as a collaborative work painstakingly stitched for the Cop26 climate change conference in Scotland in 2021 has been brought on a visit to St Austell.

The Coat of Hopes was stitched as part of a pilgrimage from Newhaven on the south coast of Sussex to Cop26 in Glasgow.

Many people helped stitch the patches, as well as stitch them to the coat. Many more wore the coat on its journey and since.

The weight of the coat represents the weight of all the hopes and prayers for the future of our world stitched into it.

Mount Charles Church welcomed people throughout the day to wear the Coat of Hopes and Barbara Keel, who is its guardian, sang the song she had written about it’s journey.

During the day visitors joined in singing the song, as we learned the words.

Some people used recycled fabrics to stitch their own patches, some of which were added to the coat.

The Coat of Hopes was an integral part of the Sunday morning service at Mount Charles Church, led by local preacher Mary Lightfoot, with the message about the environment that it carries.

Lesley Coles said: “It was an emotional experience wearing the coat and hearing Barbara tell us about its story.”