As the nights draw in and the weather turns cold, its the return of the dreaded 'spider season' - but pest control experts say fears about the eight-legged creatures are overblown. 

Autumn sees spiders across the UK seek to avoid the cold and wet weather by moving into warm, dry spaces, including people's homes, sheds, and garages. 

The mating season for spiders kicked off in early September and lasts until mid-October. 

Here's all the information you need if you're looking to make spider season as pleasant as possible. 

How can I deter spiders coming into my home?

Spiders love seeking refuge in dark, damp and cluttered places, so ensuring your house is kept clean can keep them away.

Be sure to vacuum and dust regularly, and store things away in plastic-lid boxes rather than cardboard, to prevent spiders gaining access.

For those scared of spiders and keen to keep them from their homes, there are a wide variety of home remedies that are alleged to work wonders.

Rubbing peppermint oil or eucalyptus gels around likely entry points is claimed to keep the wildlife at bay. 

Leaving conkers around your house or car is also often claimed to be a good method for deterring arachnids - as supposedly conkers contain a noxious chemical that they avoid. 

Unfortunately, there's no conclusive proof that conkers repel spiders, according to The Woodland Trust.

And pest controllers say that other supposed easy fixes are equally useless. 

Scott Hyslop from Reading-based Pest UK: "You get a lot of these stories of tricks and remedies - but they are not something that would work. 

"We would use them if they did."

The average home is thought to have at least about 80 spiders inside, and a representative from Reading Pest Control said it is very difficult to stop them from making themselves at home in your house. 

The pest controller said: "They can get underneath doors, they can get through locks." 

And they echoed comments about home remedies works. 

The Reading Pest Control representative said: "We don't deal with old wives' tales. If you have a bad infestation, you need to speak to a professional."  

Advice from the Pest Control Berkshire says that it's possible to trap spiders by "beating them at their own game."

A spokesperson from the firm said: "Spiders are predatory creatures, and they aren't stupid. They prefer to run along the edges of a room rather than straight across it to avoid danger. You can beat spiders at their own game with sticky traps.

"Putting sticky traps in the corners of your rooms will trap those that dare scurry along the edges."

Speaking to several pest control firms in Berkshire, none reported an uptick in calls about spiders or spider infestations so far this autumn. 

Which spider species live in Berkshire? 

Berkshire has a wide variety of spider species - and they all play an important part in the area's ecosystem. 

According to the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust, there are 13 relatively common types of spiders across the region. 

They include Cellar, Common harvestman, and Wolf spiders. 

Volunteer recorder Sue said spiders are not as well documented as other insects - as they aren't as popular as other creepy-crawlies.

She said: "We have about 670 species in the UK, most of these are very small and some are very rare.

"At least we think they are rare, not being as popular as butterflies and bees we don’t have nearly as much information on spider distribution as we would like, so there are lots of interesting discoveries to be made."

Jenny McCallum, Trusts and Grants Officer at the wildlife trust said spiders are "something to celebrate, not fear."

She said: "These amazing animals are a vital part of our ecosystems, feeding on an astounding number of insects.

"It's estimated that across the world, spiders eat between 400 and 800 million tons of insects and other invertebrates a year.

"Many of the insects they eat are considered pests of food crops, garden plants and even people, so having spiders around is a great natural alternative to pesticides."

Should I be worried about false widow spiders? 

Spider season sparks concerns about false widow spiders.

These spiders are sometimes referred to as the "British black widow," and they are about the size of a 50p coin. 

People can worry about them as they are venomous - but the venom isn't very powerful at all, according to pest controller Scott. 

He said: "Even if a false widow does bite you, its the same level of pain as a wasp sting. 

"We don't get a lot of dangerous spiders in this country."

PestUK says that the firm has never removed a false widow spider in Berkshire - although pest controllers have had numerous “false” alarms.