The first Kesgrave Scarecrow Festival was a straw-studded affair with Simon Cowell, Boris Johnson and even Her Majesty The Queen making an appearance.

The event, held at Kiln Farm Nursery, featured more than 20 additions to the farm’s flock of scarecrows, with families, pre-schools and care homes joining in the Sunday fun.

Ruth Goudy, who organised the festival alongside husband Paul, said: “It was fantastic and I was really amazed because we looked at the age range from toddlers to grandparents, and everyone came up with something that was really original and funny. We were really blessed with the weather and it really felt like a community event which is what made it special.”

The event was organised to raise money for Suffolk Young People’s Health Project (4YP) with members of the cause joining in on the afternoon’s fun, raising a total of around £400.

The festival came about after a bizarre complaint in August in which a member of the public criticised the farm’s scarecrows saying they were too scary.

Concerned it was a view other people in the community shared, Ruth and Paul put up a Facebook status asking if others felt the same, and that if they did the farm would happily take them down.

But after more than 75 comments overwhelmingly in support of the family-run business and its scarecrows, the farm decided to organise a festival to get families, schools and members of the community involved.

“It was lovely and everyone really had a good time. I felt like it was encouraging people to be outside and it was really well supported by everyone.”

The creative scarecrows will be on display in the nursery for the rest of the week for people to come and see, but the farm is already looking at making it an annual or biennial event.

Ruth added: “Definitely as a family we have tried to encourage people to do things as a community, and we will continue to do that as long as we can, and we are hoping to make it a regular thing.”