A cloak of a thousand poppies will adorn the statue of Swindon personage Isambard Kingdom Brunel for Remembrance Day – but the its makers are not revealing how the cloak will be draped over the statue’s shoulders.

Swindon Stitch and Bitch, a local knitting and crochet group, have been busy making poppies to raise funds and awareness for the Royal British Legion. Last year they made a six-foot poppy man to sit on a bench in Royal Wootton Basset, and this year they have made a poppy cloak for the statue in Swindon town centre.

The challenge of fitting the cloak has caused problems for the group, however.

“Due to health and safety, ladders aren’t allowed, and cherry pickers are thin on the ground with all the preparations for Christmas get under way,” said group member Tracy Major.

“The fire brigade were asked if they could assist, but they didn’t get back to us.”

The statue is six feet tall and it stands on an eight-foot column.

They admitted thinking they could sneakily put the cloak on Brunel themselves, early one morning, but the height defeated them – so they will be working in collaboration with InSwindon and are keeping their method under wraps.

“The town of Swindon wouldn’t be here without Brunel and his railways, and we wanted to make something that hadn’t been already done with poppies,” Tracy said.

“Also, the group likes to go big, and the poppy cloak will look big up there on the statue in the autumn light.”

The group wanted to do something new and exciting with poppies for the town. They explained that the poppy appeal has become part of the group’s calendar. As well as the thousand-poppy cloak they have another 300 to sell to friends and colleagues in aid of the Royal British legion.

Member Jo Jones said: “Customers are loving the variety and designs of the poppies combined with the unusual buttons.”

You can by one of the knitted or crocheted poppies by calling in to the Manor Farm pub on a Monday evening from 7.30pm, where the group meet to cook up new knitting projects. Look out for Brunel in his poppy cloak from Monday.

In 2015 the statue of Isambard Kingdom Brunel sported a woman’s bra thanks to the Swindon Bitch and Stitch group.

The 4.5kg 620cm wide and 200cm high bra, which took 12 group members four months to crochet was part of an exhibition raising awareness and funds for Against Breast Cancer which was launched by Erika Roe, who is famous for streaking at Twickenham in 1982.