The latest attraction at Forest of Marston Vale promises to put them poles ahead of the competition.

An eight-foot Native American-style Chakra Totem Pole, complete with holistic healing crystals, now has pride of place by Stewartby Lake after being donated by local businessman Vince Walker and his partner Rachael Hawes.

The pole portrays a story of spiritual awakening, with a sequence of nine animals showing different levels of spiritual awareness.

A turtle at the bottom represents respect and balance, an owl in the middle opens up intuition, dreams and meditation, and the eagle at the top depicts truth and freedom.

Mr Walker, 47, designed and constructed the pole after recently moving to Marston Moretaine and realising how the philosophy of the reserve closely matched his own beliefs. Rachael's knowledge of holistic medicine was employed to decide where best to put the crystals.

Mr Walker said: "I have a very deep interest in Native Americans. This is not an authentic pole though. Firstly, the poles are sacred to American people. I can only respect their culture to try to replicate it. And the second reason is because I wouldn't want to scare children!"

This was the first project for the duo's Wood Magic company but they hope it will lead to more wood carving commissions.

Park boss Tony Talbot said: "We are only just getting towards the good weather but the pole has already been a hit with the kids. It fits in exactly with the park because we are always keen to have local work in the park."