PURTON villagers were out in force over the weekend to scout out scarecrows.

The Purton Scarecrow Trail returned for its third event after a two-year absence with the theme of kings, queens, princes and princesses.

More than 60 scarecrows dressed like royalty lined the village streets and it was up to residents to find them and figure out who they were.

It was easier in some cases than in others - creating realistic characters can be a difficult task.

Co-organiser Lindsey Hall was all-smiles on the day.

She said: “It’s gone really well, we’ve had constant sales of scarecrow sheets.

“There’s a lovely atmosphere because everyone’s going around the village meeting up with other people and helping each other.

“There are some fantastic scarecrows this year, people have really let their imaginations run wild.

“One of the scarecrows was a King Kong costume, which someone sat in and kept very still.

“People thought it was just a model, then it waved to kids when their parents’ backs were turned.

“It’s good fun,” she said. “We’ve got scarecrows set up in three clusters around the village. The children’s trail, which is safely away from the road with pictures of Disney princes and princesses for kids to identify has been really well-received.

She explained: “The reason the scarecrow trail is every two years is because I organise a charity ball every other year.

“There’s so much planning involved that there’s no way I could do both in one year!”

Fred and Lorraine Howse were searching high and low for scarecrows with their daughter Samantha.

Lorraine said: “We did pretty well this year and we take part every time.

“My favourite thing about it is the community aspect.

“We always bump into people we know and stop for a chat, it’s lovely.

“We don’t really think about winning because there’s no way we’d get all of them.”

Samantha agreed: “We’re not very good at it, but we like giving it a try.”

Lorraine added: “There were a couple that really get you thinking.

“We had no idea what the Princess Fiona one was, but Samantha got it. Some of them are based on real royalty, so we’ve learned something too.

“We’ll definitely come back in another two years for the next one, it’s a great event.”

Prizes were given to people who found and correctly identify the most scarecrows on the trail.

The creator of the most popular scarecrow was also rewarded.

All the money raised from sales of scarecrow trail sheets goes towards paying for the upkeep of the village’s two defibrillators - one of them was bought using proceeds from the first trail.

Lindsey added:“It’s reassuring to know that they’re there in case of an emergency, but we do need to change the batteries and replace the pads every so often.”