Royton is once again preparing for its second-ever scarecrow trail this summer with proceeds going towards buying Christmas presents for disadvantaged children.

Following the success of its first "scary" trail in the run-up to Halloween last year, organisers of Royton Scarecrow Trail have announced the town will once again become decorated with crows from August to September - and all for a good cause.

Organiser Charlotte Victoria decided to start the festival when she was looking for something to do with her family and came up with the initiative to raise money to buy gifts for local children amid the cost of living crisis. 

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Last year, the trial raised a whopping £1,200 and meant 157 children enjoyed a visit from Santa over Christmas.

Speaking to The Oldham Times at the time, Charlotte said: "Back in October, I had an idea and organised Royton scarecrow festival where families created scarecrows and displayed them in their gardens whilst I created the map and organised prizes.

"From Barbie to minions and stickman, we managed to have 79 scarecrows and together we managed to raise a huge £1,287."

The mother-of-one said she researched into supporting children in the town who were struggling, to provide them with at least one Christmas gift.

She said: "It was a real shock and so sad to find that from one contact, there are 157 children who would be going without in our local area.

"Organising the event from scratch and creating maps and getting the local community enthusiastic about the event, as well as contacting businesses for donations and prizes was hard work.

"However, talking to local families and seeing them walking around holding their map was overwhelming and made it all worthwhile."

Now, the team is encouraging their neighbours to sign up for the event and register their scarecrow for the trail with a change in the date to this summer.

Entry costs £3 to display an official scarecrow along the route, which will be available for residents to enjoy between August 24 and September 8 for a small donation of £2 for a map.

Last year, reporters of The Oldham Times had a fantastic day searching for the 79 ghoulish displays that had been creatively imagined and brought to life by residents.

Charlotte had created a handy digital interactive map of all the scarecrows taking part in the festival.

Meanwhile, one popular couple hit headlines for their grand display of NHS-themed scarecrows which wowed residents and passers-by.

Hopefully, Kwok Wong and Julie Shervington will be taking part again this year and will have an equally impressive scarecrow up their sleeves to stand out on the trail.

Anyone interested in registering their scarecrow can do so by following this link: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/royton-scarecrow-festival.

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