Ponies and traps with their owners and admirers assembled on Hadley Green in an attempt to maintain the spirit of the historic Barnet Horse Fair which by tradition is held early in September but which is without a regular site.

Photographs of the impromptu Sunday gathering were posted on the Romany Heritage website.

Alongside the photographs – see above and below – there was criticism of Barnet Council for failing to offer a suitable field for the fair and appeals to the council to help find an acceptable location.

Organisers were told that the field previously used for the fair was no longer available as it had been rented out to another tenant.

Their unexpected visit to Hadley Green does raise questions about whether it should be easier for the community to hold events on Hadley Green which is one High Barnet’s most prized open spaces – and whether this would be considered acceptable.

When the ponies and traps assembled on the green, nearby householders complained about their presence and residents said that after lodging protests, council staff ensured the green was vacated.

In recent decades there have been well attended horse fairs, in fields off Barnet Lane and Mays Lane, and they have attracted a wide array of traders, but without a regular site – and the ability to publicise the fair in advance – it has been a struggle to survive.

Over the years numerous community groups have said they would like to take advantage of Hadley Green but there are extensive restrictions on its use.

It is one of many parks and open spaces owned and controlled by Barnet Council and although it can be hired for events – for small events of up to 500 people, and medium events of up to 1,000 people – the regulations are somewhat daunting.

Event organisers must follow a strict set of conditions, including requirements for public liability insurance cover – requirements which some local groups believe make its use prohibitive.

Hadley Residents Association hired the western side of the green in August for A Midsummer Night’s Dream – the association’s 2022 Theatre on the Green event.

Well over 100 tickets were sold – with instructions to bring low back chairs, rugs, and picnics – for a performance by Festival Players International whose patron is Dame Judi Dench.

The association opted for a ticketed outdoor theatre production because their previous well-attended Jazz on the Green events became too popular and too difficult to organise and manage.

There was a large crowd for the 2017 Jazz on the Green – and the association’s concern is that organising another similar event which has free access might easily exceed the council’s attendance limit of 1,000 and prove difficult to insure.

One improvement to Hadley Green does look like being delivered thanks to the dogged persistence of Peter Wanders, proprietor of Wanders shoe shop.

He is hoping that within a matter of months Hadley Green’s ornate pink marble drinking fountain might be back in action.

Situated just by the duck pond, at the High Street boundary of the green, it has been out of order for the last 50 years but through a campaign co-ordinated by Mr Wanders he hopes it will soon be restored and reconnected to the water supply.

Restoration work will be paid for through a grant from the Heritage of London Trust; Affinity Water have promised to re-connect the water supply; and the final hurdles are completing the planning and health and safety requirements of Barnet Council.

Barnet Horse Fair began in 1588 when Queen Elizabeth I granted a charter to the Lord of the Manor of Barnet to hold a fair twice yearly, in addition to the weekly Barnet Market.

Horse racing and boxing were part of the fair’s attractions until High Barnet railway station was built on the field where the racetrack had once been.

By the 1920s the decline in horse transport resulted in the decline in the importance of Barnet Fair.

Perhaps the impromptu horse fair on Hadley Green was only to be expected as travellers with ponies and traps often take advantage of the roads around the perimeter of Hadley Green for summer outings.