Frances Clamp joined me today with news of fairs and markets in Brentwood dating back to 1227. A very precise date but as Frances explained, a charter granted to Brentwood, dating
back to 1227 has just been re-discovered.

The charter grants the town the right to a weekly market day as well as an annual fair which can be held close to Wilsons Corner. So why might this be the source of controversy?

Well it seems that Havering council has suggested that they might challenge any plans by Brentwood to expand their market in the light of the old charter being recovered. It seems that Henry III granted a similar charter to Havering in 1245 which states that the minimum distance between markets can be no less than 6 and two thirds of a mile, an ancient law based on how far a sheep could be walked in a day!  Havering council used this charter to block other markets in the area, notably against Barking 20 years ago. However Havering could find Brentwood to be a more formidable opponent based on the fact that’s its charter pre-dates Havering’s by almost 20 years!

Watch this space but meantime you can listen again to what Frances had to say on this subject right here: – [audio:https://www.phoenixfm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Bygones-4th-June1.mp3|titles=Bygones 4th June]

OK. Get out there and enjoy the sunshine. See you again next week!