VILLAGERS and pupils at Ashton Keynes Primary School have hopped to it to help welcome their first Cotswold Hare and give him a make-over worthy of the village’s colourful history.

The larger than life fibreglass hare will soon take centre stage in the village as part of the Cirencester March Hare Festival’s Cotswold Hare Trail which gets underway next month.

With hares to be found as far west as Bristol right across the Cotswolds to Oxford and as far north as Stratford-upon-Avon, hare-seekers will need to keep their ears to the ground in order to track them all down.

Hot on the hoppity heels of previous favourites including Hare’s Wally, Harey Biker, The King’s Hare and Hareloom, this year’s event is gearing up to create a new endearing flick of favourites.

Yesterday, pupils from Ashton Keynes Church of England Primary School were enlisted by village artist Kathryn Gray to help her work on an attractive mosaic pattern on the village’s very first hare - inspired by the nearby Holy Cross Church.

After securing sponsorship for the hare, Kathryn has welcomed the assistance from various village group members to help her complete the hare’s tiled coat by her March 9 deadline, ensuring he is covered from nose to tale in an attractive mosaic pattern.

She said: “The hare arrived in the village at the end of November and each Tuesday I have been running a decorating session. Lots of people have been coming in and chatting to me and sticking a few tiles on so it has become a real community asset now.

"I think the youngest person to put a tile on was three-years-old, while the oldest has been 88.

“We really wanted it to be a community effort, at first people weren’t entirely sure about it, and needed a bit of persuading but everybody has become so enthusiastic in wanting to help out.”

Once the festival ends, each of the hares will be auctioned off in the name of good causes. For more details, and to find a map of the hares visit www.cirencestermarchharefestival.org.uk