CAMPAIGNERS are worried that climate change will "soon go past tipping point and there won't be a future for anyone".

That was the message from a group who demonstrated outside Barclays in Totton today (Friday October 29).

Brandishing signs and information pamphlets, the local residents made up one of hundreds of protests across the world today.

These are being held before the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference over the weekend.

Susie Laan and Louise Ravula, who spearheaded the gathering, handed a letter to the bank manager, demanding Barclays stopped investing in fossil fuels.

"I find that I'm worrying continuously about the future and it's when you do an action you feel a lot better that you're doing something," said Ms Laan.

"I do feel that the way investments are funding the fossil fuelling, to me, is unbelievable.

"We just feel there is an urgency in this, and we don't have much time – any time in fact. Soon it'll go past tipping point and there won't be a future for anyone."

The Paris Agreement, an international treaty to take action on climate change, was signed in 2015.

But since then, banks have provided $3.8 trillion in loans and investment for projects extracting new fossil fuels from the ground.

Daily Echo: The climate protest at Totton Barclays

Ms Ravula said: "We are here ahead of Cop 26 on the weekend. I don't think Totton is a place where protests normally happen, so it's good for local people to see that there are people here who want to take action, and they can come and join us if they want.

"If people want to make a difference they can complain to their bank about the way their money is invested, or to have much more lasting impact they can change to an ethical bank."

Ms Laan added: “As a grandmother I am increasingly worried about the world that lies ahead for my little granddaughter, Lizzie. Reaching net zero in such a short time is going to be a challenge.

"However, if we are asking everyone to change their behaviour, and not take a ‘business as usual’ approach, it would seem only fair that banks like Barclays stop funding big polluters, but instead turn their investments towards renewables and green projects."