[BigPaddy]

Hi all

Today I found out that the council has backed down over its position on refusing people the right to keep chickens on their allotment. However they have some rules to make it hard still.

1. No more than 6 chooks
2. No cockerels
3. Inform council of arrangements for care, housing etc
4. Provide your vet details

and, wait for it ....

5. Evidence of insurance. Of the birds themselves and liability to others !!!!

I can't find any insurance for poultry. Does anyone know if this exists on a scale meaningful to one coop of 6? I think this is just a ruse to try and hang on to their previous illegal position.

Any ideas please.

Paddy

[joyfull]

I am not sure about the amount but as an allotment is supposed to provide your family with enough veg for a year then 6 hens should provide the same family with enough eggs - if you get hybrids you should get about 30 eggs a week for the first 2 years.
The council is correct about the no keeping of cockerels.
That is quite good of them to want to know about housing and care etc - too ma ny people don't realise what keeping chickens involves.
We always advise people to get a vet who will treat poultry (not all will) before they need one so they are doing just the same.
Have a chat with your local NFU branch to see if their is a public liability insurance for poultry - it shouldn't cost much as they will be kept in a fox proof enclosure (I assume) so if a fox cant get in your birds shouldn't be able to get out and eat anybodies crops or peck any childrens eyes.

[Tony H]

Councils have no legal right to refuse chickens on alotments you have right under the 1950 aloment act   you can find out the whole rule on the DEFRA website

[grinling]

You have to have insurance for bees and have been trained in desposing rabbits, but not heard about chooks. You might have to show them your layout before keeping them.

[BigPaddy]

Thanks for the quick replies

I have no real problems with the first rules. As the society secretary I would have a personal interest in those issues on our site anyway.

It is the insurance issue. Hybrid chickens cost so little it just isn't worth insuring them for themselves. Flocks less than 50 do not interest DEFRA from a disease standpoint. The public liability risk of an escaped chicken is less than that of the pigeons, crows and magpies that plague us.

I'm not a farmer. I live in (well on the edge of) a city. I have had chickens at home for over 10 years with no nonsense. I don't know anything about NFU or any of that stuff.

Frustrated.

Paddy

p.s. thanks for the forum to rant

[joyfull]

If your birds do get certain diseases then no matter how many or few you have then DEFRA do have to be notified but you do not have to register with them until you reach 50 birds (and this can be any mixture of poultry, ducks, geese etc.) but many do register before this level so that DEFRA can notify you of any nasties in your locality.
You will not get illness insurance for hens like you do with dogs, but I suspect they do mean liability so the National Farmers Union may be able to help. They don't just deal with farmers as we have our work vans and our vintage lorries insured through them along with our car (the vintage lorries fully comp any driver over 25 is just £85 a year  )

[ANHBUC]

Have a look at this article

www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-1693205/Should-you-have-allotment-insurance.html

My eyes are too tired to read it through but I hope it is of some help.   

[teamspotty]

NFU Mutual is an insurance company that specialises in providing insurance for farmers - incl livestock.

I have horse/rider/horsebox/car/house insurance with them. Good company. As the previous poster said, give them a call....if you google it you'll get the number to ring...

[Markw]

I wish they would let us keep chickens on our allotment, not allowed to construct anything over 1 mtr tall.

[Tony H]

Hi the council cannot insist on anything that is outside UK/EU law i have looked and as yet find no such law stating that chucks would need liability insurance of any kind, you could mail the RSPCA who will tell you if any such law does exsist, if not you can can tell the council where to get off 

[Yorkie]

Hi the council cannot insist on anything that is outside UK/EU law i have looked and as yet find no such law stating that chucks would need liability insurance of any kind, you could mail the RSPCA who will tell you if any such law does exsist, if not you can can tell the council where to get off 

Actually, they can insist on anything on their own land; it will just be overridden by statute if there is anything to the contrary.

If there was a statute specifically saying that it is illegal to require insurance for chickens, then they cannot breach that statute.  But there is no such statute.

The council is perfectly within its rights to add conditions to the keeping of chickens if it is justifiable on the grounds of public health and safety, for example.