The Gypsy church born again at stately home - Yorkshire

From the Yorkshire Post

ITS Victorian Gothic spires and sprawling 250 acres of parkland will no doubt have been witness to the odd raucous high-society party over the centuries.

More recently, the venue has been used for weddings, game shoots and films and television dramas – including in 1994 as the backdrop for an episode of the Darling Buds of May.

But it is unlikely Carlton Towers will have seen anything quite like this.

The Yorkshire Post was yesterday granted access to the field where the Gypsy Light and Life Festival is taking place, 
which is protected by a ring of security, and found it a sea of caravans, with hundreds of youngsters and animals scampering in between.

The main festival tent, which is adorned with a banner saying “God is love” where numerous preaching events to help “save” Travellers are being held throughout the week, has a seating capacity of 1,800, although organisers claimed up to 5,000 people could be attending.

A constant stream of cars, many of which sport personalised number plates, and overloaded flat-bed trucks stream into the site, while caterers, one of whom was recently evicted from Europe’s largest illegal Travellers site at Dale Farm in Essex, serve tea and bacon sandwiches.

The sheer scale of visitors means North Yorkshire police officers are hosting daily meetings with festival organisers to discuss security. But despite the fears of residents in the surrounding village, the force says it has not yet encountered any problems, although it has put on extra patrols.

Joe Boswell, a pastor of the Light and Life Church and one of the main ministers at the event, said the historic Yorkshire venue was discovered as a site to host this year’s festival partly through prayer.

“We are hear to preach the gospel to reach the lost,” he 
said.

“We are evangelical and born in the spirit of God.

“We have had a lot more people than we thought, it is a good problem and a bad one as well. The roads are clear and we are working with police.

“We will be gone on Friday, I will be one of the last ones to leave the field and we will leave it the way we found it.

“There are skips, toilets, and staff here patrolling the road.

“If anyone has any fears that we are staying then that is not what we are here for.

“We are very pleased that 
the landowners have received 
us.

He added: “There are a lot of groups that are coming from the local area that are not staying on this field and we are responsible for anything that happens in the field area.

“But if we are aware of any problems then we can come and help.”

Tessa Lee, 25, another dedicated festival-goer whose father is a pastor in the church, said: “I have been saved for eight years.

“It means you can step away from your old life and are born again. I have been to this festival every year. In 20 years I have never missed one.”

In between preaching sessions, many of the youngsters stream outside into the village of Carlton and the neighbouring village of Snaith, where the parish council reportedly closed its offices after being inundated with requests to use the toilet.

Groups of boys and girls were gathering throughout the day outside Carlton’s shop, which yesterday was flanked by police community support officers, and on the village bandstand.

Despite many residents and businesses complaining of the influx, the beauty shop Dyenamix, which is situated outside Carlton Towers, was doing a roaring trade.

“There has been a big upturn in business and lots of the ladies have come to get their hair done,” said 21-year-old stylist Amy Williams.

“It is always fairly busy but I have never seen this amount of people before.

“People have been coming 
for haircuts, blow-dries and getting their nails done; it is a good thing.”

She added: “Nobody has been rude to us or anything like that. It is only the young ones that are pests.”

However, not everyone in the village was as convinced by their new neighbours.

John Watson, 65, who was out walking with his dog, Flow, said: “I took the dog for a walk early in the morning and the road was covered with litter, but then somebody came and cleared it up.

“Apparently the fish and chip shop got two hours notice before they started turning up. A bit more of a warning would definitely have been welcome.

“I have lived here for six years and never seen anything like this before.

“I think everybody in the village will be sighing with relief when it is over.”