A hamlet whose treasures lie deep

As part of Our Lovely Essex feature, we invited you to share with us the places you were most looking forward to seeing again once the coronavirus lockdown was over. Here CPRE Essex chairman David Knight celebrates somewhere that you might call a little understated…

Nestled in the heartlands of some of the most productive arable lands of west Essex lies the hamlet of Little Laver.
It is basically a series of tiny country lanes home to an eclectic mix of houses.
It has no pub; the Black Cat and Leather Bottle are long gone. It has no shops; the towns of Ongar and Harlow provide all the commodities that are required to live and more. It has no schools; Matching Green is the source of primary education and Ongar for seniors.
Its bigger brothers Magdalen and High Laver are much finer. Its little church has no bell tower; it fell in on a windy night the day after harvest festival. The congregation sang the roof off!
So it has little going for it?
If you rest yourself in the churchyard on an oak bench dedicated to an old long-serving countryman of the area you will find that it has…
Well, you decide. I’m biased as I grew up there!