Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Poultry and Pets => The Hen House => Topic started by: parsamanesh on March 17, 2017, 13:47

Title: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: parsamanesh on March 17, 2017, 13:47
Hello
I am new to this forum and i hope I'm posting in the correct section! :)

I recently applied for an allotment and was about to choose which one, so i called the council and quickly asked what the restrictions were on keeping chickens (as to how many are allowed). To which the lady replied, chickens are NOT allowed...

As far as I'm aware, chickens ARE allowed on all council England and Wales allotments under the Allotment Act 1950.
http://www.ruleworks.co.uk/poultry/allotments_uk.htm

I have taken it to the borough council who agreed that chickens were NOT allowed, and shown their legal team the allotment act 1950 and am now waiting for a reply.

Am I in the right here? I have seen a few other threads but the Original Posters never get back as to wether it was allowed or not when they disputed it.

Hope you guys can help! thanks
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: New shoot on March 17, 2017, 13:59
In theory, yes you are right, but a lot of sites don't allow chickens.  Check your site rules.   If they say no, you can still appeal.  Some advice here from the site owner, who appealed and won  :)

http://www.chickens.allotment-garden.org/keeping-chickens/keeping-chickens-allotment-poultry-plot/keeping-poultry-allotments-legal/
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: snow white on March 17, 2017, 15:32
I keep chickens, but it is a private site.  I keep mine in a reasonably rat proof chicken palace (run and coop set up).  The problem is, a lot of people think they want chickens but are not prepared to make the run reasonably rat proof.  Rats start coming in for the feed and before you know it you have an infestation (happened on our site last year).  Leaving food lying around is a red carpet for them.  You can understand why they are not allowed as fellow allotmenteers do not want to see dozens of rats running all over there lovely vegetable beds and eating all the sweetcorn and stuff.  We have strict rules and regulations concerning chicken keeping, but people still ignore the advise.  We now have a pest control company visit once a month to keep on top of things but we have to fund raise to pay for it.  If the rat problem had not gotten under control a site wide ban would be put in place, including me, regardless of my precautions. So my advise to you would be to find out why there is a ban and personally to accept it rather than go all legal about it.   It is no fun turning your compost out at the start of the year to find a dead rat in it.  :(  When mine die, I will not be replacing them.  :(
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: Yorkie on March 17, 2017, 16:53
You are right and, in principle, the council is in the wrong.  Section 12 A Act 1950 applies whether they like it or not, as long as the chickens are not causing a statutory nuisance (which they might be, if there are too many vermin problems).

If they have a blanket ban and haven't considered whether the chickens are causing a statutory nuisance, then their decision is unlawful (not illegal), and the Local Government Ombudsman would probably be interested once you've exhausted all the avenues of appeal.

Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: parsamanesh on March 17, 2017, 17:52
Thank you all for your kind replies.

I have been keeping chickens for approximately 2 years now and will take all the necessary precautions to make sure that the coop is indeed rat proof.

Prior to seeing the first reply on this post, I had sent an email talking about the allotment act and how it is in our right to have chickens, and i tried to word it as nicely as possible :) Just waiting for the reply now.

Should I post a copy of the email on here and get your opinions?
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: Yorkie on March 17, 2017, 20:26
I'm not that comfortable posting emails online.  The other person in the discussion hasn't given consent to it.
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: New shoot on March 18, 2017, 07:44
If you want to post an excerpt of your email, as John did with his letter on the main site, that would be OK, but don't include any names or contact details of either yourself or the person/mailbox you sent it to.  Don't post any replies as you won't have permission from the sender for that.

I'm not sure how many members have written to the council on a matter like this, but if you want opinions on how you worded things, or how you could make your argument stronger, people may be able to help.

There may be other reasons for their refusal.  An Snow White says, vermin can be an issue and they may have had problems on sites with rats, noise or complaints from other plot holders that have led to a ban.  It doesn't mean they shouldn't consider your request, even if they do want to set some conditions.

Its a different issue, but sheds were not allowed on our site.  One guy didn't take no for an answer and pestered (politely).  He got a yes in the end, but he had to supply a plan of his plot, details of where the shed would go and it had to be under a certain size.  The shed went up and the council were happy.  Now several people have similar small sheds.

Sometimes a bit of give and take in both directions is needed  :)
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: ApprenticeGardener82 on March 18, 2017, 07:53
I'll be very interested how this plays out as my allotment is in Rowlands castle. (although that's Havant in the address it's actually a Portsmouth allotment) Sadly we have no chickens on our sight.

Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: parsamanesh on March 18, 2017, 18:22
I'll be very interested how this plays out as my allotment is in Rowlands castle. (although that's Havant in the address it's actually a Portsmouth allotment) Sadly we have no chickens on our sight.

Portsmouth council allows chickens, this includes rowlands castle :) so you should be fine :)
Here's a snippet from the Portsmouth council site in the FAQ of the Allotments section.

"You are allowed to keep chickens or rabbits, but we discourage livestock on allotments as they are vulnerable to foxes, badgers and birds of prey, and may also encourage vermin. Contact your allotment office if you decide you would like to keep livestock, and let them know how many are being kept, along with a contact telephone number in case of any problem with the animals."
Title: Re: Law on Chickens in Allotment - Havant Borough Council
Post by: New shoot on March 19, 2017, 09:09
That gives the council perspective pretty clearly.  Their concerns are animal welfare and vermin, which is fair enough and you can have your plans ready for both. 

If they have had problems with badgers on sites, the set-up will have to be pretty solid.  Foxes are crafty and find weak spots, but badgers bulldoze their way in regardless.