I wrote to my councillor

I decided a few months ago to look into the possibility of keeping chickens on our plot.  I seen this as quite a responsibility and wanted to be sure that it was something I could commit to 100%

I discovered that our city council do not allow the keeping of chickens on their allotment sites and decided to ask why.  

I thought I'd post the dialogue for those in a similar situation.  

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Enquiry/Complaint Details: 09.08.08
I recently rented a GCC allotment plot and have been told that the city council does not permit plot holders to keep poultry. I wonder if you could inform me of the reasons why as the committee don't seem to know. I found it strange that we couldn't keep a couple of chickens on the plot, which is enclosed and out of sight, yet every piece of spare ground in the area is littered with pidgeon dovecotes and the council doesn't seem to have any issues with this.

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That’s a very good point. I’ll take this up with the department concerned and ask them to justify their position. I will ask them to respond directly to you and copy to me.

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I refer to your enquiry of 9 August 2008 regarding the keeping of poultry on your allotment and can advise that Glasgow City Council does not allow chickens or pigeons to be kept on its allotment sites.

This is contained within the Council’s Allotment Rules and Regulations (2.7).  “The plot shall be kept in a tidy condition and in proper cultivation and no livestock shall be allowed to be kept”).  Copies of these rules can be obtained from the Allotments and Recycling Officer at:

·       Land and Environmental Services, Glasgow City Council, 37 High Street, Glasgow G1 1LX

Further information on the keeping of pigeons on spare ground within Glasgow can be obtained from:

·       Development and Regeneration Services, Property Management, Exchange House, 229 George Street, Glasgow G1 1QU

I trust this is of assistance.

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I had hoped for a bit more of an explanation on they 'why' of this policy rather than just a re-statement of policy which I could ably have forwarded without troubling the department. For instance, is poultry really livestock? Are there health and safety issues which informs the policy? Will the new allotments strategy take into account society's desire for greater local food production that is more than horticulturally-based? I apologise if my first enquiry did not provide sufficient detail to explicity indicate the depth of information I was looking for.

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I refer to your e-mail of 14 August 2008 regarding the above matter and can advise as follows:

Land and Environmental Services allotments are managed by the 'Rules and Regulations As To The Constitution of Allotment Area Associations In Connection With Allotment Plots Under The Administration Of The Corporation Of Glasgow', which states that no livestock shall be kept.  These rules date back to 1959.  Our Draft Allotments Strategy recognises that there is a need to review and update these rules.  Within the Implementation Strategy, Land and Environmental Services Officers will be tasked to consult with Legal Services and investigate the position within other local authorities within the UK to produce updated rules and regulations.

I can advise that initial comment has been sought from the Public Health team in LES and they confirm that there are some issues in connection with hens.  For example, noise pollution from cockerels in early morning if the allotment is in close proximity to dwellings.  The presence of feeding materials has the potential to attract vermin, and if an infestation becomes established, it would be difficult to treat given the presence of an alternative food source rather than the rodenticide used by LES operatives.  Depending on the management and cleanliness of the allotment, there would also be potential odour nuisance associated with animal or bird faeces, which in turn may cause flying insect infestations.

As Glasgow City Council is the landlord for a number of allotments, the Council must be confident that animal welfare is also a priority.  Waste and composting/disposal could also be an issue.  If waste is disposed of off site, it could be considered as controlled waste.

To summarise, if chickens (not cockerels) are kept, and the allotment is kept clear of waste feed and droppings are removed daily, the potential to create a public health nuisance would be minimal.  If, however, feeding which is spilled or uneaten is scattered over the ground, rats could be attracted to the area.  If droppings are not cleared away regularly, odour and insect problems may arise, especially in warm weather.

The allotment strategy will be presented to Council for approval early 2009, and the above consultations and reviews will be included within the approved implementation plan, each with an anticipated completion date.

As you can see, there are a number of issues LES need to cover before we can formally give a future direction.  I am confident that once the strategy is published, our position will be much clearer.

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I have at last received a fuller response to your question about keeping chickens on an allotment. The assurance that ‘good practice’ and evidence from other local authorities will be looked into before the final Allotments Strategy comes to Council in the Spring is welcome and I will make my own enquiries too. I am particularly keen to find out how the Council takes a blind eye to ‘pigeon lofts’ appearing over Craigend without planning permission, but has an issue about controlling chickens on an allotment.

I hope this helps in the meantime but I can assure you it is not the end of the matter,

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So there we have it, some interesting points were raised by the council and I am keen to find out what you guys think.

I will do

I probably should point out that only the initial enquiry was by me, the rest of the dialogue is between my councillor and Land Services Dept.

The main points raised are

Animal Welfare
Odour
Vermin
Noise

Animal Welfare would obviously be down to personal responsibility I would assume but its the others i'm not sure about, could any of you experienced guys shed some light on the rest...

Does composting chicken manure smell any worse than say horse manure or general waste composting?

My main concern would be rats, is it inevitable that vermin will be a problem?

Do chickens make much noise?

Sorry if these questions sound silly but i've never had any experience with chooks.

Thanx in advance

our local council never allowed poulty or other animals to be kept on thier sites until around 15 yrs ago i think , when some ppl wanted to keep hens on thier plots and the council disagreed they decided to hold a meeting  an finally agreed that hens an rabbits were aloowed to be kept , i know of 3 sites around my area that are run by the same council that have birds .

my birds and run are yet to be seen by anyone from the council{ that will happen next week } but so far they have had nothing but good feedback from me keeping birds , lol i may just need to sweet talk the council and ask if i can extend the run and get more birds as i cant keep up with the demand for eggs     , the birds are getting loved an spoiled by so many ppl ... i hope your council sees sense very soon and allows poulty keeping on thier sites .

When we took on our allotment plot no one had chickens we thought it would be a great idear.We wrote and asked for permission and it was granted with lot of conditions, we had to under go a chicken management/welfare course and must have on site a copy of the rules and reglations for the keeping of poultry as set out by DEFRA.Well we did all this and the council have been very impressed with our set up and lots of other plot holders are asking for advice on keeping hens too