The Site

Wherever you live, town or country, there is room for a Faire. City dwellers can approach the local council Amenity Officer for suggestions for suitable parks and open spaces. Failing that there is always the possibility of making your event a street Faire, although once again cooperation from local councils and the police is needed to block off traffic. Sunday is the most likely day for a street event. Private firms and public corporations such as the G.P.O. and British Rail do have large recreation areas and might be worth approaching for a site.   In the country any land you have a fancy for is likely to belong either to an estate, a farmer, or the Church. In the case of common land the Trustees are the people to approach. Also, there might be suitable National Trust properties in either town or country.

Whoever the landowner may be he is going to need convincing that a Faire will not damage the land. The best way round this is to involve him, or a representative, by asking him to join the committee. If he doesn't wish to do this he should be sent minutes of the meetings and consulted about such things as fire sites and holes.

When considering a fee for the site bear in mind that a farmer may not be charging a rent so much as charging for loss of use of the field for the time it takes to erect the Faire, clear it up, and allow pasture to recover. We found that a fee of £30 per acre for three days of the Faire, plus access two weeks before and one week after, is agreeable.

Because the original Roos Hall site was too small, Barsham Faire moved two miles along the road to Rectory Paddock, which is rented from a local farmer who leases the land from the Church Commissioners. At Roos Hall we had a three acre setting against lovely trees and a fine Tudor house. At Rectory Paddock we went back a couple more centuries. The fifteen acre undulating paddock (plus another field of about twenty-five acres for car parking and seven acres of campsite) lies in front of a medieval thatched church with a traditional East Anglian round tower and carved lych gate. Across at the other side of the site the land rises to a cleft hill covered by beeches, elms, oaks and bramble thicket. At mid point the sandy soil of the hill has been quarried forming a perfect amphitheatre. At Roos Hall we had hired scaffolding to form tiered seating around the stage. The slopes at Rectory Paddock meant that we could dispense with this. A corrugated tin hut with a wooden hut behind are used by the local football team and stand at the entrance to the amphitheatre. The flat part in the middle of the site is used as a football pitch so great care has to be taken in planning holes and constructions. The fee paid for the site was negotiated so that a portion went to the Church fabric and other village funds. Villagers were invited to meetings and suggestions made as to how they employ the Faire to raise money for their own projects. Originally the people involved in organising the Faire came from outside the village, indeed few were native East Anglians. Over the years the villagers of Barsham have become more closely involved with the running of the Faire, which is now regarded as a part of village life along with the football fixtures and flower show.

Ground Work

It is good thinking to place the bar tent in an altogether obtrusive central position, within easy staggering distance of the loos. All the better if it faces an area or arena where events are happening intermittently. The main music and drama stages should be given quieter spots. In the open and without amplification, which has never been used at Barsham, a great performance can be lost through a capricious breeze, so if possible site stages beneath a spreading tree.

To keep the minimum of organisation together you need a committee tent containing a table, money bags, pens, paper, chairs, a notice board, and, during the event, at least one committee member. Tents hired from specialist firms are expensive so try to find alternatives such as breweries, scouts, rectors, youth clubs, British Legions, etc.   People in need of First Aid for bee stings or swooning due to over-excitement and the like invariably head for the Committee Tent to ask where to find it. Avoid sending them limping back across the field by asking your local St. John's Ambulance Brigade to supply First Aid cover either in, or close to, the Committee Tent.

At every large gathering there are a few small children who lose their parents, panic and howl in fright. They are usually led towards the nearest policeman. Unfortunately, the unparalleled thrill of being allowed to wear a real policeman's helmet and play with a real policeman's whistle does not always compensate for being lost. During the '75 Faire playing with children threatened to jeopardise efficient traffic duty, so a new plan emerged with the St. John's Brigade running a special creche for itinerant infants.

It's good policy not to allow whoever erects their own thing to charge people entrance to it; better to promise them a donation from the proceeds of the Faire. Visitors to the Faire should get as much entertainment for their entrance fee as possible. (Town Halls can provide information on the whereabouts of supervised adventure playgrounds).

Finally we come to firesites which need to be allocated well in advance and sensibly positioned in consultation with the landowner. The rules should be strictly adhered to and the allocated areas must be the only areas in which fires can be lit. It took us four years to arrive at a solution that minimises damage to turf. Tin drums cut in half lengthways, raised and stabilised by bricks are an ideal arrangement. Dents can be made in each end to support a grid or iron bars for cooking.

At an event lasting more than a day there will be some people who want to camp so it's best to be prepared with a camping site. At Barsham stallholders are allowed to camp by their stalls to keep charge of their wares. Everyone else is asked to put their tents on a specially reserved field which can also be used as an overflow car park. If possible, provide water and toilets on the campsite.

Other items to be marked in on a draft site plan, which will be dealt with individually include stalls, food areas (to be centred around fire sites), car parking, Maypole, fireworks, animal grazing, games etc. Make certain firm decisions on your plan but design it to be flexible, the real thing is never quite the same!

Loos

Take your toilets seriously from the very beginning to avoid nightmarish experiences on the day. You can hire loos from Landsmans Co-Ownership Ltd., Buckden, Huntingdon. The mobile toilet units include mains units which need connecting to a sewer or septic tank and no-mains units which are like giant Elsans, with a holding tank for solids that are treated chemically. The overflow is safe for disposal into ditch or stream.

Landsman units are delivered and collected and you need adequate access for a 30 feet caravan. An example of costing is large ladies and large gents, no-mains unit, for four days including delivery and collection. . . approx £260. No-mains units do not need plumbing for water although the tank needs refilling a couple of times a day. Barsham Field is usually equipped with two 500 gallon holding tanks capacity for four large units used continuously throughout the Faire, and emptied twice a day by the council sludge-gulper (booked in advance). Landsman units must be booked months in advance; without them you will have to build your own. . . .

Ex-government Elsans can still be bought for £2.50, a star bargain because of the lovely wooden seats (so warm) and attractive galvanised pail. Search the columns of Exchange and Mart for the lucky chance of securing these excellent lavs.

If there is a Public Sewer near the site contact the council and they may be able to arrange for a manhole to be opened. Otherwise, dig a BIG PIT away from the site and empty the Elsans into that. Ask the bravest souls to be responsible for emptying. Tell them that it's easier to deal with an Elsan that is half full rather than full to overflowing, and supply them with free beer to numb their senses. It is possible to hire a small sludge-gulper – cattle farms sometimes have them – for emptying the pails.

To build a gents' pissoire make a screen from old packing cases to support guttering which runs into a ground ditch or soakaway. Make sure the ditch falls away from the site.

Water

If the site is near a mains water pipe it is easy to put taps on the site. A permanent connection to a standpipe is a worthwhile investment. Put in a stopcock so that the water can be turned off. Dig a good soakaway under all standpipes or people will have to swim to get their water. We have four standpipes at Barsham. An old bath supported by four stakes is useful for washing paint pots, brushes, children and yourselves. The bath taps can be connected direct to mains and the plug hole placed over a soakaway.