This is a difficult and complex subject, and we at All Saints were dismayed to learn that our parish was one of those affected by Chancel Repair Liability (CRL). Happily, after many years of work by people who had to become informed about this arcane corner of secular lawmaking, we were able to reach a position which avoids the worst consequences of HenryVIII's ancient land grab from the church.

After we established a position where we believed no private homes were affected, some of the fields registered were developed. Residents will have seen the charge on their deeds and received legal advice on purchase. After long negotiations and the assistance of our local MP we have come to a non statutory arrangement with the developers and are in the process of removing those charges. CRL is legally a matter for the members of the local church, not the national organisation, and our volunteers are not able to process hundreds of titles in a short space of time. Residents of Roman Gate and its locality should contact us by mail or email at  the address below should the urgent removal of the charge from the title be desirable to make an impending change such as a sale or re-mortgage administratively easier. As the beneficiaries of the charge we must raise the necessary paperwork, and to do so we need the address, title number and date on which the charge was registered, which will be noted in the relevant paragraph in section C of the title. It takes about a month for Land Registry to process the request, including a set of precautions to check against fraud.

You should read the following links for our version of the full story, or just go straight to the items which interest you. The content represents our knowledge, understanding and belief at the moment, however we will update it should new information come to light.

• The Background
• Things Come to a Head in the Early Twenty-first Century
• The Position in Leighton Buzzard
• Roman Gate Activity - Removing Charges

Additional Material

The research to establish liability in the area involved many ancient documents, and some examples can be accessed by clicking on the links below:

• Transcript of Records of Ascertainment
• Extract from Tithe Map

Any enquiries about local Chancel Repair Liability should in the first place be directed to [email protected]