STAFF at a Gwent shopping centre had to give away double the amount of loom bands they had planned due to the success of the UK's first mini loom band festival.

Cwmbran Shopping Centre hosted ‘Loombran’ on Saturday, July 5 to celebrate the children's craze of making bracelets out of small rubber bands.

A spokesman for the centre said: "The event went better than planned. It was an excellent family day that was great for the children and the adults involved.

"Staff planned to give away 60,000 free loom bands but they had to double the amount to 120,000. Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves."

The craze sees children and teenagers using looms or their own fingers to twist the small coloured rubber bands into bracelets, necklaces and charms. Many shops have been selling out of the bands across the country due to high demand.

Cwmbran Shopping Centre manager, Paul Rich, previously said: “In the age of social media and tablets, we think it’s great to see such an old-fashioned craze that everyone can enjoy. We think loom bands are up there with marbles, yo-yos and hula-hoops as a toy that really captures the imagination of children."

Lorna Burgess said on Twitter: "Well loombran was a massive success! Can not believe how many people showed up."