One of the most creative ideas for parish council funding was a decorated village sign, to celebrate the things that make the community special.

It turns out that in the eyes of some, there is nothing more special about Ettington than its by-pass. Every summer, people travel great distances to enjoy its splendours. Not all of them come on motorbikes.

In truth, it is not the road itself they come to admire; but rather, a wild orchid that gros on its verges and banks, and in only three or four other places in England. It is called the bicolour bee orchid (Ophrys apifera var).

Last month, various experts and enthusiasts gathered to debate the best ways to protect the wildlife of the verges and banks of the road and its roundabout. Parish councillors listened in dismay as they described its ecological riches, which also include pyramidal orchids, common spotted orchids, blue flea-bane, yellow wort, adder's-tongue fern, selfheal, fairy flax and dropwort. One man at the meeting said he had been coming for years to trap a particular kind of beetle. There are also various butterflies, including the large skipper, the dingy skipper, the common bluee and the grizzled skipper, two of which are priority species under new biodiversity action plans. Evidently, the Ettington by-pass is also frequented by painted ladies...to say nothing of the narrow-bordered five spot burnet moth.

Hints were dropped about villagers and the parish council helping to manage the site. The county council has been working on a funding bid for biodiversity projects across Warwickshire, which would include Ettington. An annual celebration of the wildlife was even mentioned.

Brian Laney, an ecological consultant, is an enthusiast for the bee orchid and has been cutting back brambles and saplings to protect its nutrient-poor habitat.

"You have had orchid people come from all over the country to look at it. It's put Ettington on the botanical map" he told the Village News.