History of Laxton Estate

Laxton has a series of open, unhedged fields divided into lengths known as furlongs, which are sub-divided into flatts.

Farmers own flatts in various furlongs in each field, which are policed annually by a jury to ensure farmers are not encroaching on each other’s land.

Laxton Court Leet ­— the only court of its kind in the world ­— enforces farming rules dating back to Medieval times.

About a third of Laxton's population is understood to be linked to The Crown Estate, either owning or working a rented farm or living in a tied property.

Fourteen of 15 farms, which are small by today’s standards at around 120 to 140 acres, are said to be in Crown ownership.

In the 1950s, when ownership passed from Earl Manvers to the Department of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, farms of Laxton's size were more common ­— and profitable.

Today, however, the yield from the farms is roughly the same as it was then.

The farms cannot compete with bigger arable farms and struggle to make enough to pay the rents on the farmhouses that accompany the land.

The Crown Estate is a real estate business specialising in commercial property in central London, prime regional retail and offshore wind. It also has a substantial rural and coastal portfolio and manages the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Established by an Act of Parliament, as an independent commercial business, it returns 100% of its annual profits to the Treasury for the benefit of the public finances. This has totalled £2.7bn over the last ten years.