[Babstreefern]

We've just been given a new tenancy agreement for our allotment.  It was privately run, by a committee, but now been given over to the Council.  In the T&C, it states under Section 24 of the Allotment Act 1908, that we can't grow anything that is in the ground longer than 12 months, eg, strawberries, fruit bushes/trees, asparagus.  Surely, this is absolutely stupid.  I can understand if you have a plot, and wish to make it into an orchard for instance, but this is going beyond that.  I have six goosegog bushes, and a strawberry plot with roughly 12 strawberry plants (remember, you can grow these in your garden).  Can someone advise, or is it one of those "innocence is bliss" things - what the eye don't see the heart doesn't grieve situations, and just don't say anything.  In the letter it says that the Council can inspect your plot at anytime to make sure its being worked (how they can accomplish this with Council cutbacks I don't know).  Our plot is worked all the time, as does everyones.

[mumofstig]

This seems to be a standard agreement..........and is ignored on our site........nobody plants trees any more but the ones already there have stayed, and everybody plants bush fruit, strawberries etc........
and we do have council inspections but nothing is mentioned about them.

[Kleftiwallah]

Perhaps some "office wallah" who doesn't know a thing about allotments wishes to see a panorama of bare dug earth in even plots every autumn, so if anyone crosses his path he can turf them off without having to return the allotment to an "acceptable state".

I would go over their heads and ask advice from a national allotment trust or suchlike organisation.  Always argue from a position of knowledge.   What about the obligatory ramshackle shed and compost heaps?    Best wishes and cheers,    Tony.

[Aunt Sally]

We have fruit trees, bushes and plants on our alotments in plenty (nothing over 3 metres tall is our rule).  In fact the Chair of our Parish Council is a fuit specialist and ran us a great workshop on fruit pruning this autumn.

[Yorkie]

They can put whatever they want in the terms of the tenancy, irrespective of justification.

However I am slightly baffled by the reference to s.24 of the 1908 Allotment Act.  This was repealed by the 1972 Local Government Act; the original terms of the section basically imposed on the County Council the duty to consider whether it has sufficient allotments in its area, where district and parish councils defaulted in that duty (basically extending s.23, which still exists).

Nowhere in the legislation does it stipulate that anything permanent cannot be planted.  The only definition of crops etc is in s.22 of the 1922 Allotment Act:

The expression “allotment garden” means an allotment not exceeding forty poles in extent which is wholly or mainly cultivated by the occupier for the production of vegetable or fruit crops for consumption by himself or his family;

I'd go back to the council and ask them to justify the reference to s.24 and why there are such limitations on growing, particularly when fruit - i.e. permanent planting - was envisaged within the legislation almost from the outset of allotments.

[madcat]

Perhaps some "office wallah" who doesn't know a thing about allotments wishes to see a panorama of bare dug earth in even plots every autumn, so if anyone crosses his path he can turf them off without having to return the allotment to an "acceptable state".
I would go over their heads and ask advice from a national allotment trust or suchlike organisation.  Always argue from a position of knowledge.   What about the obligatory ramshackle shed and compost heaps?    Best wishes and cheers,    Tony.

Ours are parish council allotments and it was when the new Clerk (an office wallah as you put it) decided to impose new rules like this plus a bit because she thought that they should be bare earth in the winter, that the allotment association was formed and joined the NSALG for their advice on what to do next.  A little campaigning was done, adjustments to the rules were proposed, accepted by the PC and the allotmenters were happy.  The Clerk lasted a year and was gone.  So start a conversation with the Council first ....  officers and then elected representatives.  It may well be that they know not what they say.

PS Yorkie - you beat me to the bit about the Section!   

[Christine]

Our association secretary says that the basis of the nothing that is going to stay in the ground over 12 months is so that if you only take your allotment for a season the next plot holder doesn't have to clear out stuff he/she does not wish to grow. In effect you can hand over a bare plot for the next tenant.

Now that does make sense if you think about it.

Not everyone wants to grow rhubarb. Nor strawberries. Nor raspberries. Nor blueberries. Nor gooseberries.

If you are going to stay more than 12 months a bit of a blind eye will be turned of course here.

[DD.]

No, but most do, so why should they be denied the chance?

I agree no trees, but it's easy enough to dig out goosberries & strawberries if for some odd reason you don't want them.

[Christine]

Agreed DD - I'm still training the old geezers who are better than me at spuds and cabbages in strawberries, raspberries and garlic though.  And it's often the old geezers who are the stalwarts of the association.

[savbo]

are you Tameside Denton or Manchester Denton? I'm in Manchester and can say pretty certainly there'd be no problem...
M

[Chicken Pete]

I found the comments relating to this subject very interesting as I am chairman of our allotment Assoc and I have ben asked by our PC to rewrite the present tenancy agreement for presentation to them!!
On discussions with other local assoc I have not come across this type of restriction and from an allotment holders view I sympathise with these apparent restrictions.  Would it be of value to express comments to the 'powers above. that other allotment assoc allowed the opportunities to grown fruits bushes ,etc.?
The only proviso we have is that if an allotment holder leaves then they must ensure the plot is clean for the next applicant and the committee do this check. If it is found to be requiring some work either the person has to complete it or it is done for them and they are charged accordingly. Such an approach may help your request.
Good Luck

[Yorkie]

@ Chicken Pete, if you need any sources of help for your tenancy agreements, you could try the allotment regeneration initiative website or look at an example of our council's agreement here

[Babstreefern]

I'm Denton Tameside (Manchester).  I'm going to see my boss (he's a solicitor who deals mainly in Commercial Property), and see what he says about it.  But a few of us on the allotment (in fact most of us), will be speaking to the Council about it.  In fact, one of the plot holders is going to try to organise with the our Allotment Committee (who don't seem to have mentioned anything about it) to hold a General Meeting of all the plot holders.  But at the end of the day, if we don't sign and return the agreement before 31 March of this year, the Council will understand it to mean that we don't want to continue, and will have to vacate the plot the following year, 1 April 2012.  So basically, we're between a rock and a hard place.  Also, I am going to keep my fruit bushes/asparagus, etc.  After all, they are edible items.  We have to take a stand.  I'm sick to death of being dictated to

[PennyS]

We've just been given a new tenancy agreement for our allotment.  It was privately run, by a committee, but now been given over to the Council.  In the T&C, it states under Section 24 of the Allotment Act 1908, that we can't grow anything that is in the ground longer than 12 months, eg, strawberries, fruit bushes/trees, asparagus.  Surely, this is absolutely stupid.  I can understand if you have a plot, and wish to make it into an orchard for instance, but this is going beyond that.  I have six goosegog bushes, and a strawberry plot with roughly 12 strawberry plants (remember, you can grow these in your garden).  Can someone advise, or is it one of those "innocence is bliss" things - what the eye don't see the heart doesn't grieve situations, and just don't say anything.  In the letter it says that the Council can inspect your plot at anytime to make sure its being worked (how they can accomplish this with Council cutbacks I don't know).  Our plot is worked all the time, as does everyones.

That sounds plain daft to me? On our site we aren't allowed fruit trees (fair enough) and there are restrictions on some types of fruit bushes in part of the site (because of their roots and the fact that there's a gas main running through that bit - so understandable), no bonfires etc , no pigs, bees etc.  But asparagus etc are fine and I put in a big asparagus bed last year.

The restrictions you've got sound a bit extreme, surely?

[mumofstig]

as I've said it is exactly the same as the one for Ashford allotments, so it must be a standard one from 'somewhere'