SCORES of daredevil teddy bears swooped from the sky in Winchester.

The cuddly toys were all "voluntarily" taking part in a sponsored parachute jump from a church in the city.

Dozens of the intrepid beasts donned specially-made parachutes - sewn from discarded umbrellas - before being dropped from St Luke's Church in Stanmore by the Rev Mike Gardner for £1 a go.

Stalls, face-painting and refreshments were also on offer throughout the three-hour event, which it is hoped collected more than £100 for the Mildmay Street church's general fund.

One of those helping to get the teddy jump under way was Kay Hassell, who said: "We just thought it was an unusual and fun way to raise some funds for the church."