Preparations under way ahead of 2032 Preston Guild

The hunt to find the person who will spearhead preparations for the next Preston Guild is about to begin - even though the celebrations are another six years away.

The event, which is only held once every 20 years, comes around again in 2032.

Preston City Council agreed 12 months ago to begin gearing up for the guild - which dates back 800 years - sooner than it would otherwise have done because of a huge shake-up on the horizon for local government across Lancashire.

The first Preston Guild dates back to 1179 following King Henry II's decision to draw up a royal charter for the city and award it with the right to have a Guild Merchant.

The first guild gatherings were occasions to update membership of the guild merchant.

Without it, traders, craftsmen and merchants could not do business in Preston.

Its first reliably recorded celebration was in 1397, when it was already believed to be more than two centuries old.

These gatherings were infrequent and it became accepted they were only needed once in a generation.

As a result, from 1542, the Preston Guild has only taken place every 20 years.

The looming local government reforms mean that Preston City Council - along with the county's 14 other main local authorities - will be replaced by new standalone councils covering much larger areas from 2028.

It means there will be no authority solely dedicated to Preston.

Against that backdrop, the current city council moved to ensure that plans for the 2032 festival would be well under way by the time of its demise.

As part of that process, it established its usual guild committee to oversee the lead-up to the event, but across a seven-year timespan rather than the usual four or five.

A meeting of that group at the town hall this week discussed the new job role.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service has been told the exact criteria for the appointment have yet to be finalised.

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