AN ART gallery in Castle Street at Canterbury became a creche for this family of 12 when the mother left them in the courtyard while she took a swim in the River Stour.

Castle Arts owner David Lilford couldn’t believe his eyes when he glanced outside and saw the brood.

The mother is a familiar sight in the gallery’s courtyard where she nests on the wall, and it seems her ducklings got too close to the edge and fell in.

The group was well looked-after during the course of their stay and disappeared one by one to join their mother.

Mr Lilford addded: “They were lovely temporary guests, very cute. Word spread and we had lots of visitors coming to see them."