The story behind the rainbow ribbons spotted around Washington supporting the NHS and lifting community spirits

Janice and Gavin Lawrence, who own Eleganza Florist in Washington, have been making rainbow-coloured ribbons and hanging them up around Washington to show their support for the NHS and brighten up the area during the lockdown.

The husband and wife team are hoping the ribbons will catch people’s imaginations and are encouraging those who come across any to take pictures and share them on social media.

Janice and Gavin have been putting the ribbons up while out on their daily walks delivering flowers.

Gavin said: “We started off by making these rainbow ribbons and putting them on the front of our cars, just to show our support for our amazing NHS. Then I just thought, we can have a bit of fun with this. I thought why not just randomly put a rainbow on a lamppost, a road sign, a roundabout, anywhere really.

“Then when people are out and about and they spot them they can comment or take a photo, or just have a smile and think, ‘that’s that fella reminding us about the NHS’”

The simple gesture has already caught the eye of the community, with Gavin already seeing comments online of people taking pictures and asking where the ribbons came from.

He added: “We work hard and we love to enjoy and share little things with the community.”

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