The winner of today's Grand National will be presented with trophies designed in Tunbridge Wells for the tenth consecutive year.

Inkerman London, based on Sham Farm Road in Eridge Green, has helped produce some 700 pieces over the last decade for legendary jockeys such as AP McCoy as well as winning horse owners and breeders at the world-famous Aintree race.

The production process tends to take some 10 weeks - beginning in Tunbridge Wells where Inkerman sketches creative trophy designs, which are then sent to hand-selected workshops around the country, including silversmiths in Birmingham, glassmakers in Norfolk and pewterers in Sheffield.

After that, the pieces are hand-etched and engraved with individual race details, which takes the best part of the day, before they are returned to the silversmith to have the etching infilled in silver so that they stand out.

They are then returned to the spa town, where the trophies and awards are carefully boxed and personally

before returning to the spa town, where trophies and awards are carefully boxed and then personally delivered to Aintree to ensure they arrive on time and in the best condition.

Racegoers can see the trophies on display - guarded by soldiers from The Royal Mercian & Lancastrian Yeomanry - throughout the meeting.

Inkerman consultant Mark Morgan, 48, has helped oversee the process throughout each of the last ten years.

He said: "Traditionally we have worked for a lot of race courses, and it just so happened that the contract at Aintree came up and luckily someone I'd dealt with before told them 'there's only one person you need, and that's Mark'.

"We try to produce pieces that not only look smart but are also dual-use, so people can put them in the dining room or on the kitchen table.

"The Grand National is one of the top three races in the world, it's an amazing event that's steeped in history and just to be part of it in a small way is an absolute privilege."