A special coat created to raise awareness of climate change will be on display in North Yorkshire on Easter Saturday.

The Coat of Hopes began life as a collaborative piece of art in Lewes on the south coast of England. Created by artist Barbara Keal, it was to be worn by pilgrims who would travel to the COP26 conference in Glasgow in 2021.

Those who wear it are encouraged to add their own concerns, remembrances, grief and hopes for the future in the form of embroidered and appliquéd patches.

Darlington and Stockton Times: : Clockwise from top left: A small section of the Coat of Hopes showing some of the over 600 patches; Departing Roots on Thursday worn by Barbara one of the Coat of Hopes Guardians; Stokesley and Villages Repair Cafe sewing team mending the Coat to keep

After its pilgrimage to Glasgow, communities across the UK began inviting the coat to visit and, together with pilgrims, it has now been walked more than 1,000 miles and has been worn by more than 2,000 people. It consists of more than 600 patches plus additional creations, and is usually walked for a number of days before going on display or undergoing creative repair in a single location.

The coat set off from Newcastle in late February, and is making its way towards York. On March 11 it arrived at Roots Farmshop and Cafe in East Rounton, near Northallerton, at the invitation of Katherine Brown. where it rested for nine days. Whilst there, Katherine’s creative and meditative Slow Stitching group carried out repairs to existing patches and added some new ones.

On March 16 in nearby Swainby the coat was brought to one of the regular Stokesley and Villages Climate Action Repair Cafes for additional mending and embellishment. The coat was the 1,000th item the team has repaired.

Darlington and Stockton Times: The Coat of Hopes now has more than 600 patches

Katherine organised a special display and story evening at Roots on March 20, where many more people were able to see the creations and hear tales of the coat from Barbara.

It was on the move again on Thursday, March 21, stopping firstly at Brompton Church to be worn and walked by Reverend Jonathan Cooper and his wife Margaret, then onwards with Sally Anderson from Climate Action Northallerton to the town's Secret Garden to be met by Liz Styan.

After an overnight stay in Northallerton, Barbara was up early to walk the next leg towards Thirsk, where it was met by a crowd of fascinated school children.

The coat arrived at Holy Rood House, on Sowerby Road, its home until April 4, before it is scheduled to progress to York Minster, to arrive on April 7.

The coat will be on display in Thirsk Market Place from 11.30am tomorrow, Easter Saturday. People will be able to wear it, have their photograph taken, and help create new patches.

For more information, see coatofhopes.uk.