Allotment seekers urged to get tougher with local authorities


Gardeners have been urged to be more ‘aggressive’ with local councils that fail to provide new allotments. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver is partly responsible for the recent craze for grow- your-own as people follow his advice to eat more healthily- and he has given the weight of his views to a tougher approach.


The shortage of allotments in Devon and Cornwall is well known but pressure on the local authorities to provide more land might be a key route to improving the problem.


The latest figures show almost 200,000 keen gardeners are on waiting lists for allotments, with some set to wait 40 years.


Mr Oliver said keen gardeners should be lobbying their local authorities using little known legislation.


He pointed out that the Small Holdings and Allotments Act forces councils to provide allotments if more than six people make a request.


The television presenter and author said people need to “get noisy” and force councils to convert unused land like disused car parks or building sites into new plots.


“Nothing seems to happen in this country any more unless you’re a bit renegade about it,” he said.


“If gardeners want more plots they should all get together. It was the same with my campaign for school dinners.


“People thought their voice couldn’t make a difference. But the minute people got together, things started to happen.”


Mr Oliver said councils that drag their feet could be breaking the law.


“There is an old law which states that if there is civic land that’s not being used, and all allotments are full, then they must hand it over,” he said.


“Councils have a lot to deal with. So gardeners need to shout loud and clear. People need to be more aggressive about it.


“They should go on to the Land Registry, identify council land that’s doing nothing, then go to the council with a clear vision of what they want.”


A recent survey of over 150,000 council plots in England found 91,500 people waiting for an allotment – up from 76,330 last June.


The figures indicated there are around 60 people waiting for every 100 plots, up from around 50 people last year and just four people in 1996.


The severe shortage has meant that some gardeners are facing waits of up to 40 years. The average time is over three years.


Campaign groups are now threatening legal action to force councils to hand over unused land to gardeners keen to grow their own tomatoes, lettuces and fruit. The National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners (NSALG) estimate that across the country more than 180,000 keen amateur gardeners have been left without a plot.


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There is a long wait for allotments but it may be councils can find more land


Under the 1908 Allotments and Small Holdings Act councils have a duty to provide land if six people or more request an allotment. Should none be available the authorities are required to force private landowners to free up space.


But Donna McDaid of NSALG said there is no time limit on how long councils can claim they are actively “looking for land” and some say they have searching for up to eight years.


She said this is preventing campaigners from using the law to force councils to provide allotments because officials claim they are still looking for an appropriate site.


“If people are asking for allotments then councils have to look for land, but a lot are just saying they are looking and we can do nothing about it because there is no time frame,” she said. “I think they are probably exploiting a legal loophole.”


How to find a vacant allotment?


The first and best port of call is your local authority – they will manage allotments in Devon and Cornwall and will also know of privately run allotments outside of their control. Try their website first or try the local library. The details might not be under allotments but might come under Parks, Recreation or Leisure Service. Once you know of a site it is well worth checking out the facilities on offer. Have a chat with any plot holders to find out what it’s really like. Unfortunately some sites suffer from vandalism and its well worth finding out what the risk is like well in advance. If there is a waiting list – and there probably will be, have a chat with the site manager. If they know you are keen and will make something of the site it might help. You might also consider seeing if there is someone on the site who is struggling , perhaps getting older and finding it hard to keep things in order . Offer to share and help. You benefit from advice and the owner might benefit from some muscle.


Country Gardener


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