Swan Sculpture Trail to build on success of Buckingham Otter Trail

Following on from the huge success of the Buckingham Otter Trail in 2021, Buckingham Town Council will be running a second public art sculpture trail during the summer holidays this year.

The Swan Trail is again designed to be a family-friendly community project that will attract visitors to the town and help increase footfall to local shops and businesses.

The Buckingham Otter Trail featured 10 3ft-tall otter sculptures made out of resin and fibreglass, which were individually decorated by schoolchildren, local artists, charities and community groups. Eight of them were sponsored by local businesses and charities.

The Otter Trail went live during the Buckingham Fringe Week in July 2021 and ran until the end of August, with the otters displayed at various locations around the town for people to spot. Each otter had a plaque noting the name of the artist and sponsor, and including a QR that directed people to an app providing more information about the project.

Each plaque also had a ‘missing letter’ to record and unscramble to reveal two words, and people who completed the trail had a chance to enter their answers in a prize draw and claim their ‘otter spotter’ badge.

The otters proved amazingly popular, encouraging locals to explore the trail, bringing footfall to parts of town that people do not normally visit and also attracting people from out of town. One family even came from Leeds to do the trail on a day trip.

After the trail was dismantled, each of the otters was entered into an online silent auction, raising nearly £3,000. Half of the money went to the mayor’s charities and the rest is being put towards the costs of this year’s Swan Trail. The project has also been awarded a grant from the Buckingham & Villages Community Board.

The town council will be collaborating with local schools, artists, groups, businesses and organisations to help them design, paint and sponsor a swan sculpture for this year’s trail, and it’s again looking for local businesses and charities to sponsor individual swans.

It’s also launched a Swan Design Competition, open to anyone over 16, with full details available on the town council website.