Traditional Copford festival raises hundreds for church

The Copford Scarecrow Festival saw residents, businesses and community groups create their best scarecrows in aid of St Michaels and All Angels Church and The Pits Wood Trust.

The scarecrows were then put on display outside a variety of establishments between August and September before a special fair was held last weekend.

The event, which boasted a variety of stalls, saw hundreds of residents gather in the grounds of Copford Church for a barbeque and refreshments before the winning scarecrows were announced.

The People's Vote Winner was the adorable Sugar & Spice, while the Business Winner was the creative Sea Crow Titanic

Cheeky - The adorable winners of the People's Vote, Sugar & Spice (Image: David Brady)

Impressive - The Business winners with the awesome Sea Crow Titanic (Image: David Brady)

The Overall Winner, meanwhile, was the amazing Lady Copford, pictured below.

David Brady, the organiser of the event, said: “I was behind the BBQ all day and despite the heat I could see everyone was having what can only be described as a wonderful quintessentially English afternoon.

"Lots of cake and tea was had by many with lots of stalls selling everything from beer can earrings to paintings by Copford artist Jan Whitehouse.

Floral Fun - The beautiful Lady Copford, the overall winner of the scarecrow show (Image: David Brady)

"I understand that there were more than 30 large scarecrows and almost 40 miniatures which were mainly made by Copford Brownies.

"This year was bigger and better than last year, with more than 100 people attending the day and 310 online votes for the people's choice award."

Tiny - Miniature scarecrows made by the local Copford brownies on display (Image: David Brady)

This year's festival raised more than £600 for the two charities, which has inspired residents to already start brainstorming ideas for next year's scarecrow invasion.

For a full list of all the winners head to: copfordscarecrowfestival.com