The grammar police have been trying to solve what appears to be a spelling error in Iwade.

It concerns a road sign, “Purple Emporer Grove”, which has been recently installed at the 400-home Hillreed housing development off School Lane.

The misspelling - according to the dictionary, it should read Emperor - was brought to the attention of residents after it was flagged up on Facebook.

Roads on the new estate are named after British butterflies and the Purple Emperor is a particularly beautiful member of the insect species.

James Hunt, chairman of Iwade Parish Council, said the mistake has generated mirth, rather than anger among villagers.

He said: “It’s a silly mistake to make because someone has obviously not carried out checks before installing the sign.

“Residents have found it quite funny - the job’s been handled by a few different people but nobody’s picked up on the error.”

Mr Hunt said he has contacted Swale council about the sign, but he’s not sure the local authority is to blame for the mistake.

“It could be Swale, the developers, or the contractors who designed it,” he said.

The new development will be made up of 14 streets in total which Mr Hunt said will include “a lot of long-named butterflies”.

“So there’s plenty of opportunity for more mistakes,” he said.

A decision to name the roads after butterflies was taken after the parish council rejected a plan two years ago to title streets in honour of Britain’s 1912 Olympians.

Mr Hunt said: “The parish council will be keeping an eye on the spelling of future road signs, and in the meantime, we hope to see the Purple Emporer Grove sign rectified as soon as possible.”