A SUMMER arts trail in Trowbridge in August will feature 30 brightly-coloured falcons decorated by secondary and primary school pupils.

Some of the A3-sized falcons have been decorated by pupils in all year groups at the John of Gaunt School working from home during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Others have been decorated by some of the school’s 25 feeder primary schools, including Studley Green in Trowbridge.

Organiser Helen Kerr, assistant head teacher at John of Gaunt, which uses a falcon as its emblem, said: “They are absolutely amazing. It started out as an idea for a treasure hunt and has really taken off.

“The project originated by asking Year 6 pupils in transition to think about what school means to them and to have a bit of fun.”

The Falcon Arts Trail project is being supported by Trowbridge Town Council and many of the town’s leading businesses, groups, clubs and other organisations.

They include Trowbridge Chamber of Commerce, Wiltshire Council, Trowbridge Rugby Club, Hope Nature Centre and Dreams bedding and mattresses retail store.

Mrs Kerr said: “We have made some strong links along the way and have engaged with our local community.

“It has also provided a good opportunity for the children to look at things slightly differently.”

The plan is to fix one of the falcons, which stands about four feet high, to the balcony of the Old Town Hall, overlooking the town centre.

The Falcon Arts Trail begins on Saturday, August 1 and will end on Monday, August 31.

Four of the falcons will be displayed in The Shires shopping centre, two at the Hope Nature Centre, and three at the John of Gaunt School entrance.

Others will go to Trowbridge Rugby Club, two local care homes, the Dreams store, and other locations around the town.

The falcon was one of the symbols used by John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, who was a son of King Edward 111, and a great 14th century military leader and statesman who owned the land on which the school now stands.

Meanwhile, a Reading-based group are calling on Trowbridge locals to say what they like about their home town for a celebration song.

Jonny & The Baptists has been asked by Trowbridge Town Hall Trust to make something creative to celebrate Trowbridge.

Jonny Donahoe, of Jonnny & The Baptists, said: “I’m a stand-up, playwright, and I write songs as one of half of our musical-comedy group.

“We want to make a song to celebrate Trowbridge. And we need your help? What do you secretly love that others don’t?

“What’s the one fact about Trowbridge you always tell outsiders? And what would you like people who don’t know the town to say about it?”

To get involved, e-mail your response to jonnyandthebaptists@townhallarts.co.uk.