RESIDENTS may have recently spotted new green discs on pavements around Kidderminster, Stourport and Bewdley.

They are GPS checkpoint markers for the Wyre Forest Heritage Trail app launched by Wyre Forest District Council.

By downloading the app, people can hear stories and see the lives of local characters who will appear in-situ on their device thanks to the latest augmented reality technology.

As people progress through the town trails, they will meet the ‘Kid from Kiddie’, Bewdley’s signalman Matt Morgan, Rowland Hill the Time Travelling Postman, Canal Builder James Brindley and many more characters.

All the checkpoints are accessible on foot.

Councillor Dan Morehead, Wyre Forest District Council’s cabinet member for planning and the green agenda said: “Anyone with access to the internet on their phone or digital device can immerse themselves in the history of the towns and find out what went on in that exact spot at least a hundred years ago.

"It is a great way for friends and families to combine a town centre walk with being entertained in a fun new way.  Why not do the trail over the weekend and call into one of the many café’s and places to eat and drink as part of your visit?”

The checkpoints for the Wyre Forest Heritage Trail in Bewdley are near the Stanley Baldwin Statue, Bewdley Museum and Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Gardens, Severn Side South, Severn Side North.

In Kidderminster, they are at the Severn Valley Railway, The Carpet Museum, Rowland Hill Statue, The canal at Mill Wharf, the original Frank Freemans Club, Severn Valley Railway, and in Stourport-on-Severn they are at the Canal/river junction basin, The Tontine, York House, Holbrook’s Vinegar Works, J Corbett and Sons, Lichfield Street.

For more information and to download the app, visit the Wyre Forest Heritage Trail page.