THE White Horse Kite Flyers hold the 21st annual Swindon Kite Festival at Lydiard Park on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 5pm.

Entry will be free, and the organisers say visitors can expect a colourful and spectacular event with kites of all shapes and sizes.

There will be kite-flying demonstrations by the Close Encounters flyers from Andover, who demonstrate their expertise with a running commentary so the public can learn and understand what they are doing.

There will also be displays of a variety of kites, from giant parafoils to miniature tissue paper examples, by flyers from all over Britain and a number from overseas.

For family visitors, there will be a selection of children’s rides and a children’s kite workshop, where for a small fee children will be able to build a kite of their own. There will be food stalls and visitors are also welcome to bring a picnic.

The festival will see the club put together 250 kites to be sent to Japan for children left with nothing by the recent earthquake, following a request from Modegi-san, the president of the Japanese Kite Group.

Further information about the festival can be found at www.whkf.org.uk.