Engrave your loved one's name on Yorkshire's Heart of Steel sculpture

The Heart of Steel is a monumental sculpture created by local steelworker-turned-sculptor Steve Mehdi, with space to engrave 150,000 names and which will raise vital funds for the British Heart Foundation’s life-saving research.

Many people across the region and further afield have already made a donation to honour family, friends and colleagues.

Now there’s a chance for others to do the same, and have their name or that of a loved one inscribed on a heart that is set to last well into the next millennium.

The 2.4m-high heart is made from a super alloy normally seen in high-performance engine parts used in the aerospace industry and Formula One racing which won’t erode or corrode, meaning it will last hundreds of years.

The Heart of Steel is currently on display at Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield. For as little as £20 you can add a name and a meaningful date, like a date of a birth, death or marriage, to the heart. Families’ and friends’ names can be kept together on the heart, though each name needs a separate donation.

The idea for the Heart of Steel originally came from another monumental work of art in the making, the Steel Man. Steve Mehdi has a vision to build the Steel Man to honour the men and women of the steel industry, to give back to the community and the city, and become an icon for the region.

The Steel Man project has now developed into plans for a 32m-high landmark and visitor centre above the M1 in Sheffield. Overlooking an area steeped in industrial history, it will act as a beacon for the Yorkshire region.

When someone suggested the Man could have a steel heart with the names of thousands of supporters engraved on it, Steve took them at their word and designed a heart sculpture. Soon after the Heart of Steel appeal became linked with the British Heart Foundation.

The appeal gathered pace last year when new research showed that Yorkshire and Humber have the highest death rates for heart and circulatory diseases in England. These are 10 per cent above the national average, with a shocking 13,500 people dying from heart and circulatory conditions such as heart disease, stroke and vascular dementia every year.

Your donations will help fund the British Heart Foundation's life-saving research into cures and treatments for heart and circulatory diseases, which kill one in four people in the UK. Donations will go directly to the charity to help beat the heartbreak caused by heart and circulatory diseases and keep families together.

To find out more and to engrave the name of someone you love, see Heart of Steel.