HUNDREDS of fruit fans enjoyed Lathcoats Farm's annual apple day on Saturday.

From apple-tasting to pie-baking competitions, visitors to the farm in Galleywood celebrated all that is great about the popular fruit.

And after the rainy weather has been tough on this year's apple crop, the organisers behind the day think Saturday's event was a "triumph".

Philip Taylor who runs the farm with his brother Stephen, said: "It was an amazing day.

"The support of everyone who came along was outstanding.

"We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and hope everyone else did."

Along with sampling some of the farm's finest apples, visitors enjoyed fun activities such as archery, donkey rides and even an apple peeling competition.

But the main event of the day was the apple pie verses apple cake competition, with more than 100 entrants participating.

The winner of the 'Best Tasting' award was Petra Howieson, of Chelmsford, with her apple cake made from a recipe from her mother, who died in February.

Mrs Howieson, 46, said: "I made two cakes, one was mine and the other was my mum's recipe, it was my mum's that won.

"I was up at 7.30 to bake the cake by 11, I was checking it every five minutes.

"It was very exciting and I was surprised at all the cake entrants, they looked great."

More than 2,000 people enjoyed the day, a 20 per cent increase on last year. And £400 was raised for the Essex Wildlife Trust from the 40 varieties of apple juice sold.

HAVERING Borough Council could slog it out with its Essex neighbour in a court of law – with the future of its ancient market at the centre of the fight.

The scene could soon be set for a heavyweight legal battle between Brentwood and Havering councils – both insisting they have the right to operate large markets close to each other with evidence from medieval charters granted to each by the King 800 years ago.

Romford has warned Brentwood – wanting to enlarge its own street market – that it is not afraid to go to court to close down any competition wanting to operate within a "day's sheep drive" of the market.

It has already invoked its market charter – granted to it by King Henry III in 1247 to stop other markets setting up within six-and-two-thirds miles of the market square.

Brentwood falls within that radius, but thanks to its own recently discovered market charter – granted by the same Plantagenet king 20 years before Romford was given theirs – the fight might yet be on.

That has not stopped Havering from warning off Brentwood, which said in a council agenda it will use its own charter to "establish its right to hold a street market in the light of Havering's challenge to any neighbouring markets".

Brentwood is keen to develop its street market, held in the High Street, and has written to stallholders inviting them to trade in the town.

The charter provides "a very sound foundation to improve and develop our street market offer," the council agenda states.

Havering says it is all speculative – arguing rights under a charter can be lost through being abandoned due to lack of use.

Havering councillor Robert Benham, cabinet member for community empowerment, said: "We are very proud of our market, and it attracts visitors from miles around.

"The charter we have is over 800 years old and held by the British Library. We will use our charter rights to stop other markets being set up in the area it covers."

Tony Geary, chairman of the Romford branch of the National Market Traders' Federation, said: "I know that Romford takes its market very seriously.

"We have used the charter in the past to defend our right to be the only market within six and two-thirds miles.

"I also know of Brentwood market and their plans for their street market. But I don't think it will come to the point of getting into a legal fight with Brentwood. I am sure we can live with each other."

Clive Othen, chairman of Brentwood Chamber of Commerce who tracked down the charter, said: "Not quite sure when the last Brentwood to Romford sheep drive took place but we suspect that due to the quality of Brentwood sheep stock and their good weight, such a hazardous drive could take longer than a day and a half.

"In any case Brentwood's 1227 market charter is likely to be legally superior to any later grant, and restrictive practices legislation may also now be relevant."

FAR from the champagne-soaked adrenaline buzz of London's trading floors lies a quiet office in Warley where independent investors get together to buy and sell and share ideas.

It is not the place for wannabe Gordon Gekkos.

In fact, as soon as you walk through the door at Forex Trading Floors, a place to buy and sell foreign currency (hopefully for profit), in Lorne Road, you are warned "this is not a get-rich-quick scheme".

What it is, is a place where seasoned traders can hire up to four screens and a desk so that they can watch the dollar dip, the pound plummet or the rupee rise surrounded by people going through similar experiences.

But there's also help available for the absolute beginner.

In fact, housewives, the recently redundant and pensioners are all ideal candidates to learn about "levels of support and resistance," "stop loss" and "pips," says owner Andy Argent, from Billericay.

Mr Argent, the former owner of a plumbing shop in Woodman Road, Brentwood, believes foreign exchange trading could suit anyone looking to work the hours they want.

He also says it's quite simple and that the more you put in, the more you get out in every sense.

The father-of-three decided to set the business up last month after becoming a trader himself and realising the value of having people in the same game around you.

"We are not a trading company, we are a trading floor and we will also teach people how to trade," he said.

"I have found that so many training courses are teaching people based on false hope, but we are not going to give anyone false hope.

"It could be six months or 18 months before you start to make a profit from the foreign exchange markets, because not everyone develops in the same way, but as long as you can remain disciplined and patient, there is a good living to be made.

"It's about when the coin drops."

Among the rules that will be drummed into newcomers at FTF are to never risk more than one per cent of your overall funds in any one transaction, and don't place more than five new trades within a day.

If everything goes to plan, Mr Argent's "conservative" prediction is that a new trader, starting off with £5,000 in their account, could expect profit of around £3,500 after the first year, £10,000 after 24 months and in excess of £80,000 after five years.

Around 20 people attended last week's open day.

There was a mix of experienced solo traders looking for a desk, bright young sparks looking to set the world alight, and people looking for a new career.

The message from trainer Martin Still, 63, is that anyone with half a brain, very basic PC skills and at least £500 (that you can afford to lose), can give it a try.

"It's better if people do not tend to over-analyse everything," he explained.

However, bear in mind that you will also need a spare £1,078.80 for the ten hour one-to-one training course to get to grips with the basics, such as the concept of using graphs to pick when the exchange rate of two currencies, known as a pair, are likely to move in the opposite direction.

For more information, call 01277 232223 or e-mail info@forextradingfloors.co.uk or www.forextradingfloors.co.uk

BRAVE ladies – and a couple of men – dared to bare their lumps and bumps in a naked charity calendar.

The group of Roxwell women included Andrea Warden and Julia Wells, whose dad and husband were diagnosed with cancer on the same day in February.

On a whim the ladies decided to create a bucket list - an itinerary of things to do before they die - and the All For The Love Of Life calendar idea was born.

"We were chatting about life in general, all of us friends are around 50 years of age, and we just said 'this is not good everyone is just popping off around us'," said organiser, Andrea, 48.

"We said we had to do a bucket list and to write down as many things as possible on it.

"Our aim was also to do things for charity but the naked calendar was just a joke.

"Everyone laughed when I said we are going to do it, but everyone in the village still got involved."

On the launch night at the Chequers Pub over 100 calendars were sold, making more than £600 for Farleigh Hospice, Cancer Research UK and Macmillan.

"Nobody had seen the pictures before the event, I tried not to look at myself," said Andrea.

"All the photos were taken in Roxwell, from farms to the fields, and were chosen by votes from people in the pub a few months ago."

The calendar has attracted a following on Facebook before it was even revealed, getting requests from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

"We have had some laughs making this calendar, riding around Roxwell on horseback – naked," said Andrea, who looks after 63 horses in Roxwell.

"The January photo is a couple who just came down to the horse yard, at Dukes Farm, to look after their horse and asked us what we were doing.

"When we told them, they disappeared into the stables, returned naked, and said, 'where do you want us'? We even got caught by a man mowing his lawn when we ran into a field with just knickers on."

To buy a calendar or for more information visit www.allfortheloveoflife.co.uk.

A CHELMSFORD-BASED estate agent has been crowned the best in the county.

For the second time, Beresfords was named Best Estate Agency in Essex at the annual UK Property Awards.

Managing director Paul Beresford attended the awards ceremony with his wife Joanna.

He said: "Our double win is testament to the hard work of the team over the last 12 months."

"Drawing on 44 years' experience in Essex, our brand new website has also helped to make the search for a new home in the county even easier. Having been shortlisted for a number of other industry awards, we hope we can build on this award success over the coming months."

Terry Holmes, who has worked at the company for 31 years, said: "You feel a bit self-conscious, but you get this feeling of pride.

"We employ not far short of 200 people and what we do is all down to them. No one person is more or less important in what they do."

Held at the Marriott Hotel in Grosvenor Square last week, the awards were presented by Peter Bolton King of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. Beresfords was also awarded the highly commended prize in the Best Website category.

The new website features quick search tools to find properties in your price range, in suitable areas and by using key words.

Mr Holmes said: "You tend to find a lot of estate agents these days are very, very internet based or very, very traditional.

"A lot of people use the internet but a property is the most expensive, valuable asset that you are ever going to buy and you want to speak to people that know your area and how to advise you.

"While the internet is crucial, there will always be a place for the traditional aspect. We provide the sorts of services people deserve."

For more information visit www.beresfordsgroup.co.uk

CHELMSFORD Chieftains' player/coach Gary Clarke is confident but wary ahead of this Sunday's league game against Milton Keynes Thunder.

The Riverside Leisure Centre-based side could be without key overseas defenceman Tibor Schnider for the game as he's struggling with a trapped nerve.

Clarke said: "Milton Keynes managed to get a draw in Cardiff last week, a rink we lost at recently.

And they beat Streatham at home so they got three out of four points last weekend.

"They're a very organised side.

"The last time we played them it was very difficult, there was only one goal in it and we'll have to make sure we're at our best to come away with the points."

Last weekend was one of mix fortunes on paper for the club with a narrow home league win against the Solent & Gosport Devils followed by a narrow 4-3 defeat away to Invicta Dynamos in the South East Trophy.

The Trophy defeat was immaterial as the Chieftains had already qualified for the final in January where they will meet Wightlink Raiders and Clarke made major tactical changes.

On Saturday against the Devils the Chieftains were made to work hard for their two points by a tough visiting team that battled right to the end of the game and were backstopped by Christian Cole who had an immense game in the Devils net.

"We made the league win on the Saturday very difficult for ourselves," explained Clarke.

"When you compare us man for man when we're a much better team than Solent & Gosport but they came with a game plan and made life very difficult for us. On another night we cold have scored another ten goals but I'm pleased with came away with the points."

Danny Hammond struck early for the home side and the first break was 1-0 to the Chieftains, but it wasn't a convincing scoreline.

Into the second and more goals went in with Clarke doubling the advantage before Kevin Tanner hit back for the south coast side. Darren Brown restored the two goal advantage before the final break, but a third period marker from Mitchell Murray set up a nervy finish for the home crowd.

The Chelmsford side held on, despite late pressure and were lucky to get the extra point.

On Sunday night and the Essex derby between the Chelmsford Warriors and Romford Fury took place in the second tier of the National League which ended 4-4.

This Sunday's games is at home with a 6.30pm face off.

AN ASPIRING medic is preparing to set pulses racing at a beauty pageant to find Europe's top model.

Fresh from being named the Face of London in her first ever pageant, Arathi Menon, from Hutton, will next month be heading for France in a bid to claim the coveted title Face of Europe.

Yet the 19-year-old, who stands at just five foot tall, is not just a pretty face – for she is also a talented actor and a medical student in the second year of her degree at Imperial College, London.

Miss Menon, of Hutton Mount, beat 12 other girls to win the Face of London in front of a live audience of around 200 people on September 7.

On November 18, she will travel to Disneyland Paris to face off against some of the most gorgeous girls the continent has to offer as she attempts to become the Face of Europe.

Miss Menon, who has acted in The Bill and Crimewatch, said she had not expected to win Face of London, in which she had to impress a panel of judges while posing variously in an evening gown, a party dress and casual wear.

"The pageant was an out-of-the-blue thing and I was surprised to win because a lot of the girls were very tall and blonde," she said.

"I used to model in pre-teen magazines when I was 10 or 11 but since then I have been acting."

Durham-born Miss Menon said the pageant, which also featured an interview with the judges, had made her think differently about modelling.

"I'm definitely thinking about entering other competitions," she said.

"There is more to modelling than people think – it isn't just about standing on stage and looking pretty."

At present, she is managing to juggle her modelling, acting and medicine, and hopes this can continue.

She added: "Medicine is very time-consuming but in the last academic year I managed to do modelling and film while studying for a degree.

"I would love it if I didn't ever have to pick."

Her mum Sudha Iyer, 50, hails from Kerala in south-west India, but has lived in the UK with husband Jay Menon since 1990.

Ms Iyer, a consultant at Basildon Hospital, said: "It would be great if she won the competition.

"I have always encouraged her from a very young age."

She added: "Whatever she wants to be, we will support her all the way."

Face of Europe also has a charity aspect and Miss Menon is hoping to raise at least £300 for Headway East Kent and Rainbow Child Foundation. To sponsor her, visit www.charitiestrust.org and search for Arathi Face of Europe under events.

BRENTWOOD Town manager Steve Witherspoon has hit out a match officials who feels clearly robbed his side of a home win in their FA Trophy First Round tie against Lewes on Saturday.

Despite taking the lead three times in the 3-3 draw Witherspoon was left angry over crucial moments in the game where he says decisions when against his team.

"I never normally criticise referees and their assistants because they do have a difficult job but on Saturday I was left fuming over what were the blatant mistakes they made which did cost us victory," he declared.

"Early on when it was 0-0 they refused us such a clear cut penalty it was unbelievable," Witherspoon continued. "We go 1-0 up and then they equalised with again what was clearly an offside goal.

"We get in front twice more and with their last equaliser I couldn't believe it as Ryan Doyle was blatantly fouled in the build up and then their same player clearly handled the ball before putting it in the net," he continued. "I know you get the odd debatable decision going against you but these were so clear cut and straightforward."

Witherspoon went on: "I believe the referee was Italian and the assistant our side involved in the controversial moments was Bulgarian and there was a possibility of them perhaps not understanding each other in terms of the languages as they should in those crucial moments.

"Despite all this I'm proud of the way my team played their football and we were far the better side than our Premier Division visitors," he continued. "We passed the ball well and created chances and in reality we should have won and I was pleased with our overall performance but frustrated with the result."

Due to injuries and suspension Witherspoon was forced to play three teenagers - Sam Cross, Sam Bantick and Connor Witherspoon - all who have come through the Town's youth ranks.

"All three were fantastic and showed great maturity and proved what a successful youth set up with have at the club, " Witherspoon. "Disappointingly all three missed the replay because they are needed to play for their youth side against Gillingham in the FA Youth Cup tonight (Wednesday)."

For last night's replay at the infamous Dripping Pan ground Town did have experienced defender Darren Blewitt back although midfielder Steve Butterworth was still out suspended and Robbie Rees was unavailable.

"We're going there aiming to again play the way we do do with our football and give it a real go despite all the disappointment of not finishing the job on Saturday," he added.

The winners face a tough away tie in the next round to Kingstonian.

This Saturday, Town are away to AFC Sudbury in the league and that game is of a more concern for Witherspoon whose side sit in a lowly 17th position in the league.

"We're clearly in a false position and we are games behind everyone so we need to catch up and win our next two or three games to get us up well into the top half of the table where we should be," he explained.

He went on: "I do feel we've not quite got the balance of the side right - unlike last season we conceded the least goals of any team in the division but scored too few.

"Now we scoring goals but we seem to be giving too many away particularly in league games where we should have won and we didn't," he said. "We've overall played 18 games, won eight and only lost four so we're not doing too badly. There's still a long way to go this season but we need to get that balance in the side right," he said. "We will I'm sure and as I've said before we'll be up there amongst the leaders at the end of the season."

TOADSTOOLS, earth balls, brackets, slime moulds and stinkhorn are among the fungi you can now see at a nature reserve in Billericay.

The organisms can be observed at Norsey Wood's annual Fungus Foray event, which will take place between 10.30am and 12.30pm on Saturday.

Entry to the 165-acre woodland reserve, which can be found off Outwood Common Road, is free.

Those who join in the event will be able to view toadstools and their ilk in the company of a countryside ranger and a local fungus expert.

The woodland, parts of which date back 4,000 years, is owned by Basildon Borough Council.

Councillor Kevin Blake, the authority's cabinet member for leisure and arts, said: "We have a range of events going on throughout the year in our woodlands and country parks.

"These offer the chance for local people to find out more about the diverse range of animals, plants and the things that are not so easy to categorise, like fungi."

There is no need to book.

Children must be accompanied by a responsible adult. Dogs are welcome but must remain on a lead.

THE number of full-time fire crews in Brentwood will be halved – despite the end of a four-year industrial dispute between firefighters and managers at Essex Fire and Rescue.

Fire crews had been at loggerheads with their management over plans to cut the number of full-time fire crews stationed at Brentwood, as the fire service seeks to cut £10 million from its operating budget.

But that dispute has now come to an end as the Fire Brigade Union accepted the assurances from chief fire officer David Johnson to maintain the overall numbers of whole-time firefighters across Essex up to March 2015.

Brentwood fire station campaigner Russell Quirk said: "I'm as relieved as most that the protracted and problematic industrial dispute has now been brought to a close.

"The sacrificial lamb in all this remains as Brentwood with the loss of 50 per cent of its full time firefighters, thus leaving our town vulnerable. I am still unable to accept this."

Keith Handscomb, an executive member of the Fire Brigades Union, said: "The challenges ahead are huge as the fire and rescue service faces the most severe cuts ever in central Government funding."

Chief fire officer David Johnson said that while both parties would acknowledge there remain differences, it was time to look forward.

He said: "The service will face financial challenges over the next couple of years and it is important for us all to focus our energies on the future."

THIEVES have been targeting Carphone Warehouse in Brentwood, making off with hundreds of pounds worth of mobile phones and tablet computers.

The raiders are believed to park their car around the corner from the shop before charging in, grabbing display phones from the walls and running out.

The High Street store has been hit on three consecutive Mondays at around 4pm. The first raid was on October 8.

An employee of the Brentwood shop, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "It appears to be the same group of lads. You don't really see their faces, but they are all wearing hoodies. Sometimes there are two in at once, other times there can be five. They come in and just rip things off the wall, coming to us and saying 'Yeah, what you gonna do about it?'."

Despite the continued and consistent attacks, the Carphone Warehouse have not improved the store's security.

A spokesman for the company said: "The safety and welfare of our employees is our number one priority and thankfully nobody was hurt in this instance. We are working closely with the police on this and assisting them with their enquiries."

He added: "There is a difference between snatch and grab instances and someone being threatened with a weapon. I do appreciate, however, that both examples are still scary, which is why we are working very hard to prevent them."

Attempts to identify the thieves were thwarted, when the discovery was made that the county council had built a sign in front of the nearest CCTV camera.

A spokesperson for Essex County Council, which placed the sign, commented: "Essex County Council has not been informed of any issues with road signs in the Brentwood High Street area that are causing concerns with CCTV monitoring.

"The County Council has a statutory duty to install road signs for the benefit of all highways road users. CCTV camera positioning and installation is the responsibility of the Borough Council."

The Brentwood Borough Council added: "The door to Carphone Warehouse can't be seen by CCTV camera because of the sign but approximately one metre either way of the door can be seen. The CCTV camera covers many shops in the High Street."

A spokesman for Essex Police said: "We are aware of these thefts, but they do not necessarily form any sort of regular series, with apparently different people and different methods and targets."

BRENTWOOD Borough Council has defended its choice of agents acting to negotiate the best terms with Stockland – even though there is a pecuniary interest between the two.

Brentwood Borough Council says there is no conflict of interest between CBRE – a property consultancy company – and developers Stockland, which outsourced the management of its office and industrial assets to CBRE in 2011.

A spokesman for the council said: "It is common for companies the size of CBRE to act for different clients that are connected to a development.

"CBRE assures us that it has rigorous internal procedures in place to manage situations where clients are on both sides of a project and that these procedures form part of their ISO accredited quality management system.

"CBRE have also told us that there is no involvement of the people advising the Council and the team in a different part of the company advising Stockland on its industrial portfolio.

"Different filing systems are in place and neither team can access the other's digital data over the IT network."

CAN you believe a brightly coloured octoped such as this is completely harmless?

Just one week before Hallowe'en, this hairy spider certainly put the willies up mother-of-five Tina Dorling when she made its acquaintance on a Fyfield country road.

"The first thing you think is because it has a red back, it might be dangerous, but now that I know the truth about it being harmless, I am relieved because I let it go," the Moreton Road resident told the Gazette.

The drama unfolded last week as she was heading to visit a friend.

She recalled: "I was driving on the Norwood End road heading to see my friend Suzi, when in front of me, there was a council truck and two workmen blocking the road.

"After a while of sitting there I got out and said 'have you broken down?' and they said 'no, we are looking at the spider on the road'."

And there it was – Araneus quadratus, which has been known to offer a nasty nip, although it produces no venom.

Ms Dorling said the beast was no bigger than a 50 pence piece.

"One of the workers had a bit of paper and the spider was going up on its back legs and trying to attack it," she added.

In the heat of the moment the housewife even considered trying to trap the arachnid.

"I had an empty Coke bottle and I said 'shall we try to put it in it', but they said 'leave it, leave it'.

"Later my friend told me you should never touch anything if you don't know what it is, it could have shot up my arm or anything."

When the unexpected episode was over, Ms Dorling admitted she thought it could have been a killer spider because of its colouring and "strange markings."

But Stuart Hine, from the Natural History Museum, confirmed the creature was not dangerous.

He said: "This is a female example of Araneus quadratus.

"It is a common and widespread species in the UK and one of our larger orb web spiders.

"They vary considerably in colour and hue and they are able to give a nip if handled roughly but are otherwise harmless.

"They are of course usually to be found in the middle of an orb web, which makes them altogether more conspicuous when observed crawling along a footpath."

THE organiser of a new enterprise exhibition, the first of its kind in Brentwood, says she is aiming to inject some fun into business.

Rather than the stiff and stuffy trade shows of the past, Kathryn Painter, a wedding and corporate events planner, from Hutton Road, Shenfield, will be encouraging people to loosen their ties and unbutton their top collars at the first ever Brentwood Centre business expo on December 7.

With 40 of the 100 stand spaces already snapped up, the show, which is being launched in partnership with the Gazette, is looking like it is the place to be for progressive networkers.

So far conveyancers, recruitment experts, accountants, consultants, hoteliers, printers, insurance companies, a will lawyer and a go-kart racing business are among those signed up.

Miss Painter, 30, who is a big fan of Yeovil Town Football Club, set up KEM Event Management three years ago and organises around 25 events a year, including weddings and corporate fairs.

She said: "This is going to be very different from other business exhibitions that you may have been to.

"For starters there will be beer and wine served, some exciting entertainment, and a raffle in aid of the Brentwood charity SNAP.

"I'm doing this because my aim is to keep the atmosphere relaxed, as well as making it a great opportunity for some quality networking.

"The idea is that people come along, get involved, have some fun and make good contacts."

Gazette editor Neville Wilson, also 30, described The Brentwood Business Exhibition as an "amazing opportunity to add real value to your business".

He added: "This is a Brentwood expo, mostly featuring Brentwood businesspeople.

"I see great ways that we can all work more closely together, share best practice and mutually benefit, and this event is a catalyst to start to get that process under way.

"I look forward to meeting many people there and chatting through ideas over one of the Brentwood Brewing Company's fine ales."

The event, which will be held in the main arena of the Doddinghurst Road venue, is free to attend for visitors and will be open from 9am until 4pm.

Exhibitors can gain access from 7am on the day and booking a stand costs £120, access to power costs £15 extra.

For more information e-mail admin@kem-event.co.uk or call 07730 032965.

SNAP (Special Needs And Parents) is a Warley-based charity that exists to support parents of young children with disabilities.

A LOAN shark has been sentenced to three years in prison for blackmail, plus 15 months for illegal money-lending, in Havering.

Stephen Basstoe, 41, of Eastern Road in Romford, was convicted on Monday following a six-day trial at Basildon Crown Court.

Basstoe operated between January 2008 and the point of his arrest in February 2011, threatening borrowers and forcing them to pay back far more than they borrowed or could afford. No paperwork was ever provided.

A typical interest payment would be £150 per month, per £1,000 borrowed, until the whole lot could be repaid in a lump sum. Late charges were between £100 and £500 a day.

One victim had his car taken from him as security, which was then sold on. He eventually fled to London, after Basstoe threatened his elderly grandmother.

Another victim took out a £2,000 loan, and when he struggled to make the interest payments, was hit with £500-a-day late payment charges.

Basstoe also made veiled threats that the loans had been given by a third party and there would be severe repercussions for defaulting.

Sentencing Basstoe, His Honour Judge Owen-Jones said: "It was clear that once people had borrowed money they would be under your control and power.

"Your demands increased simply to supply your greed for more and more money. Your behaviour was totally reprehensible, and loan sharks that resort to blackmail must be deterred.

"This matter is so serious that it must result in an immediate custodial sentence."

PRIVATE medical insurance funded by the taxpayer is not offered to staff at Epping Forest District Council – in stark contrast to the position at Essex County Council.

The Gazette has learned that workers at the civic offices in Epping are not entitled to receive medical cover paid for by your taxes.

As previously reported in this newspaper, the county council forked out £878,120 between April 2009 and April 2012 to provide medical cover for up to 331 employees.

Epping Forest District Council staff are permitted to join a private medical insurance scheme should they choose, although they must fund it.

The information emerged following a Freedom of Information request to the authority.

A statement accompanying the reply read: "The council makes no contribution towards this [medical insurance] and the council holds no record of which employees have arranged their own private medical health insurance."

Pressure group The TaxPayers' Alliance welcomed the district council's stance on medical insurance.

Its political director Jonathan Isaby said: "Council tax-payers in Epping Forest will be relieved to learn that the district council does not spend a penny of their cash on private health insurance for employees.

"That kind of spending is unaffordable and completely unjustifiable, especially at a time when budgets are tight and difficult decisions are being made about how to spend resources."

Ongar MP Eric Pickles, who is also the local government secretary, welcomed the news.

He said: "Congratulations to Epping Forest for costing residents nothing. It is a very good authority that has been well run over a number of years."

THE proud son of a Brentwood man who snaffled what is believed to be a Rembrandt masterpiece for less than £4.50 in 1962 has confirmed it remains in the family.

Portrait Of An Old Man was acquired by the late Edward "Stowers" Johnson, the controversial art collector from Hutton who said it proved the one hanging in the Louvre was just a copy.

It was the star turn in a £1 million collection, which he amassed on a headmaster's wage over a half a century.

Despite a Turner and a Constable among the ranks, it was the piece by the Dutch master that most attracted Fleet Street, the TV cameras and even the eye of oil baron Sir Paul Getty, who once declared an interest.

Within hours of the Gazette hitting the newstands last Wednesday, barrister Roderick Johnson, QC, the son of the "shoestring millionaire", got in touch to answer our appeal and confirm the artwork was safely at the Johnson family home near Blackmore.

Mr Johnson, 65, says it was even hanging on the staircase until recently, when it got the better of its hook and fell onto the carpet, cracking the glass cover.

The father of five and only child of Stowers and his mother Gwen, said his dad, who died at the age of 86, was a thorn in the stuffy art world's side. "He was seen as a maverick and a threat to the Establishment," he said.

"They didn't like it that somebody outside of their private circle of experts could make discoveries because they liked to keep their expertise within their little club.

"He was also looked at askance by the Establishment art world and his books were critical of the main auction houses and the monopoly of the art world."

Stowers was a fluent Russian speaker, who became a headmaster in Aveley at the age of 29, the youngest in Essex at the time.

He was also an author who wrote on many subjects, including antiques and education.

He was born at home in Dark Lane, Great Warley, in 1908 and lived in a four-bedroom house in Rayleigh Road, Hutton, for 37 years.

At Brentwood School, where his son and some of his grandchildren have since been educated, he shared a classroom with famous zoologist George Cansdale and Sir Hardy Amies, outfitter to the Queen.

He studied at the College of St Mark and St John in Plymouth before embarking on a career as a teacher of English literature.

Mr Johnson described his father as a "loving man who was also strict and stern", and who despised injustices of any kind.

His affection for art began as a young boy when he collected coins and became fascinated by the images on them.

"He began going to antique shops a lot and I remember going with my dad and watching him in action," Rod said.

"He would spot something he liked and whisper to me 'this is a good thing, just pretend you are not interested'."

After a moment of feigning enthusiasm for another object, Stowers would then make a half-hearted offer for the piece he really wanted.

Over the decades of trudging up to London antique and auction houses, and making plenty of mistakes along the way, he developed a keen eye for hidden treasures.

"Most of all he liked auctions and he used to say how he never bought from the private individual, he always bought in the cut and thrust if you like," Rod said.

He also revealed how his father, who would restore artefacts to sell them on, had a passion for the craftsmanship of art and design as well as the buying.

When Stowers died of cancer in 1995, he left behind 253 items that he had collected at auctions and on his travels.

The most he ever paid for an item, while amassing the seven-figure collection, was £800 for a bronze, Rape of the Sabines, by Jean de Bologne.

Rod says that achieving modern authentication for his father's biggest pieces including the Rembrandt, is an ongoing matter for him to take care of.

He said: "My dad said 'we will have trouble if we tried to get this authenticated because of the closed ranks of the art world'.

"If it's a genuine Rembrandt then it follows that it would be the archetype of the one in the Louvre or it could be one of several versions painted at the same sitting.

"I would certainly say it would be worth millions of pounds.

"But it's such a huge step to get up to that point, it would have to be scientifically tested, authenticated and so far we have not got anywhere near that.

"I have eventually got to have this investigated at some point."

Despite the anticipated value, Rod has confirmed Old Man is definitely "not for sale".

A YOUNG footballer whose career was destroyed following an altercation in Brentwood last year says he has "lost faith in the justice system" after police closed the case.

Nicky Morgan, 26, says he is "disgusted" at the way police have handled the investigation into an incident on October 28, 2011, which left him temporarily paralysed.

Speaking about the case being dropped, he told the Gazette: "It's absolutely gutting and it could not have happened at a worse time, yesterday (Sunday) was exactly one year after my incident.

"I have lost faith in the justice system and everything. To go through what I have gone through and not to get any justice, it's been quite a big blow."

The Gazette reported last year how Mr Morgan, a goalkeeper for Billericay Town Football Club, suffered spinal injuries in the incident.

He was knocked to the ground after getting involved in a ten-man brawl in William Hunter Way, to the rear of the Sugar Hut nightclub.

Police at the time said he may have been targeted after helping security staff break up a fight inside the celebrity night spot.

In December police arrested a 33-year-old man from Sittingbourne, Kent, in connection with the incident, but he has since been released without charge.

Mr Morgan added: "I am not happy with the police, the way they have dealt with the whole situation, they were hardly in contact with us.

"I don't feel that they dealt with it the way they should.

"They led us along this year saying we have got hope, then they kept quiet and in the last month, we begin to hear that things had changed."

Mr Morgan, from Loughton, once feared he may never walk again. Although he is back on his feet, he admits "deep down" that he will never play football again.

He said the incident, which has left him with pains, spasms and a partial loss of feeling from the neck down, has "turned my whole life upside down".

"It's soul-destroying and it rips my heart out when I hear about other people taking about football.

"I have lost my football, lost my job, lost the house that I was in, and now I am starting again."

Mr Morgan did however thank those who had supported him during his recovery.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: "The Crown Prosecution Service has accepted that there was no offence after extensive investigations showed that the injury was caused in an accidental fall."