SUPERHEROES, spaceships, steampunks and swashbucklers were just some of the colourful characters who made their way through Brighton for the annual Children’s Parade.

Thousands of children marched through the city decked out in costume on Saturday to mark the launch of the city’s May festivities.

Schools from across Brighton and Hove and beyond took part, with every child dressed to fit the theme of “taking flight” as spectators cheered on.

Imaginative costumes in the parade included a group of Batmen, the Red Arrows, a giant chair-o-plane, flying ants, astronauts, the Thunderbirds and a group of mice being menaced by a giant falcon.

The procession marched its way from Kensington Street to Medeira Drive with approximately 5,000 children in the parade and ten thousand spectators lining the route.

Our Lady of Lourdes School, in Rottingdean, had the centrepiece of the parade as a giant willow-weave of the tree creature Groot from science fiction movie Guardians of the Galaxy.

Parent and artist Anna Gathy, from Woodingdean, who helped the school make the sculpture hailed the event as a “fantastic day.”

The 47-year-old said: “Luckily the rain held off and with the drumming and everything it was really special.

“We were the Guardians of the Galaxy so we had the cute Rocket Raccoons, the Stars Lords, the Gamoras with the green face paint and the big woven willow Groot.”

She added: “The parade gets bigger every year. It is always slightly different with the themes always being so clever – it is really lovely and a great thing for the whole community.”

For more than 25 years the Children’s Parade has opened the Brighton Festival and it is now believed to the largest annual kid’s event in the country.

The parade is run in conjunction with Brighton-based community arts charity Same Sky.

Pippa Smith, head of creative learning at Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival said this year’s theme allowed “youthful imaginations to soar” and praised the efforts of the schools and teachers.

She said: “Once again the teachers have surpassed themselves. A lot of work goes into the parade by Same Sky and Brighton Festival and it is a celebration for the whole city – but when it comes to it, it is the teachers who make it happen.

“They are the unsung heroes and heroines of the Children’s Parade and it is wonderful to see our city in celebration.”

n See tomorrow’s Argus for four pages of pictures from the parade.

More pictures on pages 32/33.