A show of support for plan to try to save Laxton
A show of hands at the end of a meeting showed broad support for progressing a community-based initiative that could safeguard the future of the UK’s last remaining open-field farming system.
The Crown Estate has agreed a new owner needs to be found for the Laxton Estate and its farming practice that date back to Medieval times.
A potential rescue package has been drawn up by the chairman of the trustees of Laxton Visitor Centre, Sir John Starkey, with the support of Laxton and Moorhouse Parish Council.
It would see the village itself take control and a proposal to investigate that possibility was put to a meeting on Tuesday.
About 50 people attended and heard the chief executive of the Sherwood Forest Trust, which works to protect the history, heritage, nature and landscape of Sherwood Forest, pledge support in raising money to get the project off the ground.
Sir John opened the meeting saying the Laxton Estate and its open-field system was “not being managed in a most desirable way.”
He said the requirement of The Crown Estate to produce a 5% net return on assets for the Treasury, while providing effective management of the open-field system on behalf of the Department for Agriculture, was not compatible.
The Crown Estate admitted to the Advertiser last week that, as a commercial real estate business, it focused on sectors where it had expertise.
It said the open-field system required specialist management and ongoing investment.
“As such, we recognise that it may be better managed as a heritage asset,” it said.
Sir John said The Crown Estate had said the new owner would not be an individual or institution, and time would be taken to ensure the estate was disposed of in the right way.
“The only people in whose hands I feel it could be safe is the people of Laxton,” he said.
“The only solution is for the people of Laxton to own this estate. No other individual or organisation is suitable.”
Sir John said sustainable agriculture would underpin British agricultural policy post-Brexit, and Laxton, with its history, offered huge potential.
Laxton is the country’s last working feudal village.
It has a series of open, unhedged fields divided into lengths known as furlongs, which are sub-divided into flatts — a system once common throughout the country.
Farmers own flatts in various furlongs in each field. A court leet, the only surviving court of its kind, oversees fairness in the process.
Sir John said if they gained ownership of the estate, there was an opportunity for Laxton to become a benchmark in the sustainable farming sector and be in pole position for a Government contract to demonstrate how sustainable farming was achievable post-Brexit, because that was what it had been doing for centuries.
He said both Nottingham Trent University, whose land-based studies campus was 12 miles away at Brackenhurst, and the University of Notting-ham would be “itching” to join forces to help with research that would shape policy.
'Potential to be the bedrock of farming in this country'
He said Laxton would expect to be paid for what it did, bringing further revenue into a village that made a small profit for the Treasury.
“There is huge potential for Laxton to be the bedrock of farming in this country,” he said.
He said the backing and input of the universities would be critical.
Sir John said the support of MPs and local authorities would be required, adding Newark MP Robert Jenrick’s elevation to the post of Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury could prove vital.
Laxton’s plight has already reached the desk of Environment Secretary Michael Gove.
Sir John hoped The Crown Estate would pass the estate on free as a village-based trust would develop it as a heritage asset, possibly with the help of the Heritage Lottery Fund.
He said a public appeal would be needed to raise money to progress the project and to support any lottery application. A grant from that body would need to be match-funded.
If successful, he said, residents would have input into the way the village developed.
He said a farm shop could stock produce grown in Laxton or that the open-field system could be developed for educational purposes.
'You are sitting on a fantastic resource'
The chief executive of the Sherwood Forest Trust, Mr Patrick Candler, offered his organisation’s support, saying it had raised millions of pounds in the past 20 years.
“In my view, and that of the trust, you are sitting on a fantastic resource,” he said.
“You have a story here to be told. In many ways The Crown Estate may have restricted what you can do.
“With the right mindset, you could be in a pivotal position to benefit not just the farmers but the village.
“We think Laxton could be an absolute winner on this one. You can be a pioneer.”
Sir John said there would now be further consultation with interested parties and investigation of potential funding streams.
There was some disquiet at the meeting.
One member of the audience said: “Not in your wildest dreams are they (The Crown Estate) going to give it to you. They are going to sell it. Any property is saleable.”
However, another villager said: “If control passes to the village, we have control over what happens.
“The opportunity and the power is in our hands. It is perhaps not an opportunity that many would get.”
'Doing nothing is not an option'
Asked what would happen if the rescue package ultimately failed to bring dividends after it was set up, Sir John said the estate could be handed back to the state.
Speaking after the meeting, the parish council chairman, Mr Michael Manning, told the Advertiser: “Preserving the history of Laxton is every bit as important as protecting its future.
“What was proposed here this evening could have benefits not just in preserving a major part of English farming heritage but in setting a way forward for farming throughout the whole country.
“What we have needs to be preserved and I am very happy with the turnout for this meeting and that the majority want to try and take this forward.
“Doing nothing is not an option.”