- Rollesby’s car boot sale was scrapped by organisers in response to complaints
For more than half a century, thousands of people have turned up from miles around to hunt for bargains at a popular car boot sale in a pretty Norfolk village.
But there was trouble brewing amid the trestle tables, with some residents complaining of heavy traffic and parking issues.
‘Agitators’ even involved Sport England and the Charity Commission over claims damage to the field caused by the sales was stopping pastimes like football and rugby.
The rift in Rollesby deepened when the organisers who paid to use the site tired of the complaints and packed up and left for good – leaving a hole in local finances that helped push up the parish council precept by 158 per cent.
Aggrieved locals who supported the car boot sale complained they had been left out of pocket as a result and deprived of an enjoyable event on their doorsteps.
One opponent, who didn’t want to be named but lives opposite the playing fields said: ‘No one wants it here. Cars would park on both sides and emergency vehicles couldn’t get through.’
Another seethed: ‘It all seems like great fun for visitors and people in the village who live further away but I was getting blocked in by inconsiderate parking.
‘There was noise, mess and no real benefit as far as I was concerned.’
But supporters included Darren Smith, who has lived in the village for 25 years and regularly walks his dog on the field.
‘It’s sad for it to end and it is strange the way it has been handled,’ he said.
‘It used to be what you did every weekend and it brought people together.’
A 43-year-old woman called Jenny who moved to the area a year ago added: ‘It’s surprising the way people have behaved.
‘It’s a real shame it’s ended – we never had any problems with traffic. Now the playing field is really underused.’
Car boot sales were first held at the spot in the mid-1970s.
From 2006 the events were run by Lesley and Bernard Barron, who paid the Rollesby King George Playing Field Trust £2,100 per year, rising to £3,500 in 2023.
The seeds of unrest were sown in 2021 when the couple applied to increase the number of events each year from 14 to 28.
The request was approved on a temporary basis by Great Yarmouth Borough Council but frustration among some locals burst into the open over subsequent plans to make it permanent.
They argued the car boot sale had outgrown the village, which has around 1,000 residents served by a 12th century church, and pointed to the problems the chaos they said it caused.
A complaint was even put in to Sport England, the national body set up to encourage physical activity, over allegations the churned up field was no longer suitable for team sports.
The Charity Commission was also involved because the field is operated by a charitable trust. No further action was taken because the field is officially an open space and had never been marked out for pitches or contained changing rooms.
The Barrons – who were contacted for a comment – withdrew their application in April last year and reverted to 14 car boot sales per year.
But an unintended consequence of their business plan was that evidence they had provided to show support for the extra meetings included information about the £20,000 turnover it generated for them each year.
Some villagers complained this showed the field’s trustees should have charged more.
The Barrons finally gave up on the car boot sales in September last year.
But the loss of income meant the trust was no longer able to hand over £1,900 towards the upkeep of the field and the parish council stepped in to help, adding to financial pressures it was already under, and its council tax precept has now increased by £4.63 per month for every household.
Building surveyor Stuart Tate, 51, who lives near the field, questioned why there was a ‘peppercorn rent while the car boot operator had a large turnover?’
He added: ‘The field has become run down, with worn-out buildings and deteriorating facilities. Much of this has been caused by the car boot sale over the years.
‘The charity has been left with no income and now we are having to foot the bill.’ But a well-placed village source accused a ‘small number of people’ of driving the bad blood which led to the car boot sale’s demise.
They said: ‘Most people were happy to have it there and felt it was minimally invasive but a small number of people took it upon themselves to agitate about it and cost us the car boot sale.’
A Rollesby Parish Council spokesperson declined to comment on the situation, saying the field was the responsibility of the trust – although it will put £4,800 towards its upkeep this year.
There are also plans for new ‘revenue streams’, including a summer fete and Christmas fair.
The field was among 506 established in memory of King George VI following his death in 1936.
The Charity Commission said concerns had been raised about the playing field but it didn’t open a statutory enquiry or formal investigation.
A spokesman added: ‘We previously engaged with the charity to issue advice and guidance to the trustees on decision-making and disposals.’
Sport England was contacted for a comment.
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