Trowbridge Town Council clerk Lance Allan is preparing to cycle 800 miles from Somerset to Northumberland to mark the 800th anniversary of the sealing of Magna Carta.

Mr Allan will travel the distance from June 20 to 28 next year as part of the council’s celebrations, while raising money along the way for Dorothy House Hospice Care and Re-cycle (Bicycle Aid for Africa).

Magna Carta was the first document imposed upon a King of England by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their rights.

Most of the 25 barons who enforced Magna Carta were from the East and North of England, but the headquarters of Henry de Bohun was in Trowbridge.

Mr Allan said: “There are lots of things going on in the town to mark the anniversary and when I worked out the shortest route to visit the 22 baron towns was almost 800 miles exactly it seemed ideal.

“I’m a regular cyclist, but this is further than I have ever done before. It will be a good opportunity to raise the profile of the town and remember its role in the historic document.”

Trowbridge will celebrate the 800th anniversary and Henry de Bohun’s major role in the enforcement of the Great Charter in a series of events next year, including an exhibition in the town’s museum.