Lying on the banks of the gently meandering river Waveney, Geldeston has long been known as a peaceful backwater.
But the picturesque village is now the venue for a furious row after all but one of its parish councillors and clerk resigned in protest at the alleged behaviour of its remaining member.
The dispute has even seen police called in to investigate, while South Norfolk Council has been forced to draft in district councillors to allow the authority to continue running.
The extraordinary bust-up follows a tumultuous parish council meeting which saw a series of arguments erupt and a member of the public walk out.
Five departing councillors later announced their decision in a letter posted on the village noticeboard, with a blistering attack on councillor John Crowfoot, accusing him of being "abusive".
He denies this and has described the letter as "libellous and unlawful".
However, despite currently being the only elected parish councillor left, his former colleagues will not tell him who has the key for the locked parish noticeboard.
It means he has been unable to take down the letter and, as of this week, it remains on display, two weeks after it was posted.
A sixth member of the council, chairman Ian Ansell, and the parish clerk resigned at the end of May.
The letter said: “We no longer feel that this councillor [Mr Crowfoot] represents the community’s best interests or conducts himself in an acceptable manner and is therefore unable to fulfil his role as parish councillor.
“This ‘vote of no confidence’ is in response to the actions of this councillor, spanning several months, in which he has been abusive not only to other members of the parish council but also members of the public at parish meetings and, in particular, the clerk, Tina Newby.
“As a direct result of his behaviour, Ms Newby has handed in her resignation alongside the chairman, Mr Ian Ansell.
“The councillor in question is Mr John Crowfoot.
“Mr Crowfoot’s consistent unacceptable behaviour has left the remaining five parish councillors no option but to resign with immediate effect.”
The resignations came after the council had held just one meeting following the local elections on May 4.
The minutes of that meeting, held on May 10, suggest it was a hot-tempered affair, with a member of the public walking out during a discussion about fencing at the village's allotments after being upset by an unnamed councillor. Mr Crowfoot acknowledges this was him.
The event had also started with a row over who should lead it, with Mr Crowfoot arguing that Mr Ansell should not have opened it because it was the first meeting after the elections. The clerk sided with Mr Ansell.
There was then another argument after Mr Crowfoot objected to Mr Ansell and his deputy chairman, John Ashfield, being re-elected to their posts. The other councillors all voted against Mr Crowfoot.
Police have been asked to investigate the rows, with officers visiting Mr Crowfoot at his home on Saturday.
He said it had been a "waste of everyone's time" and added: "I didn’t want any of this to happen."
He said he had no intention of resigning and was working with South Norfolk Council - which oversees the running of the authority - as it tries to help the parish council continue operating.
He said it was "ridiculous" that he could not remove the open letter on the parish notice board because no one will tell him who has the key.
“It seems to have come to a head and now we are forming a new parish council.
“SNC has said that you can’t have a parish council cease to exist, there must be one that looks after people’s needs.”
The Geldeston native, who worked in Russia for about 15 years, said he felt he had been smeared by the accusations.
He said anyone making such allegations should give "chapter and verse", providing full details so he could refute them.
Asked why a member of the public walked out of the last meeting, Mr Crowfoot said he had reminded people, through points of order, how the meeting should be conducted and that had frustrated some of those present.
He added: “There are important issues that people in Geldeston want examined – road safety, flooding and so on. You can’t carry on without a parish council.
“It’s been an extraordinary event, but we will get on with addressing local issues for local people. It’s been a bit of a storm in a teacup.”
READ MORE: Mystery after councillors resigned 12 days after being re-elected
Mr Crowfoot is a historian who worked as a translator in Russia. He also helped set up a literature prize and worked with a human rights organisation which have since been closed by Vladimir Putin's regime.
Ms Newby and former councillors John Ashfield and Jane Hayward, declined to comment.
A police spokesman said: “Police received a report of harassment on June 2, 2023. Officers visited the suspect at their home address and words of advice were given.”
South Norfolk Council has been contacted for comment.
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