Allotments in N Ireland

[Cookieka]

Does anyone know if any of the legislation regarding the onus of the Council to provide allotments can be applied in Northern Ireland? Or if there is any Northern Ireland legislation about it?

[saddad]

Welcome to the site Cokieka, we have some NI members they might know... I wouldn't have thought so... the preamble of our acts dates back to before partition so Should include NI unless there have been subsequent amendments.. 

[ceres]

The NSALG are the experts on this and are very helpful.  They have a lawyer who gives advice on this kind of stuff.  Use the email contact on their website:

www.nsalg.org.uk

[Cookieka]

Thank you.  Got an excellent reply from the association recommended.

[sunloving]

Hi
I looked into this when i lived in moneyreagh, the allotments act doesnt apply and the plots per 1000 households also doesnt. However the agenda 21 and the healthy living drives do apply and are the reason that belfast council just opened a new site.
Contact their allotments officer (reg something)and i think that the legal blurb about this is on the belfast city council website. We wrote to ards council with six rate payers asking for plots with no luck at all.

There are a few private plots such as at newtown ards (£200 for less than a half sized plot) you also have to find public liabiilty insurance due to the litigious nature of the community.
There are simularly priced schemes at saintfiled and at gransha in co down not sure about other counties. Its really quite riddiculous that you have to be rich to have a plot, indeed on any sunny sat there is a cue of bmws and posh 4x4 parked outside the ards site (becahse they wouldnt want to get their pretty cars dirty),. Belfast list is 250 long (approx 3 years)

good luck with it all, im glad i live in gb now.
x sunloving

[ganda]

Most N'Ireland councils have small plots available. This keeps them covered by any legislation that may or not exist. I however hope to open an allotment garden with at least 32 plots available in  June/July in the outskirts of Ballyclare Newtownabbey.

[saddad]

Best of Luck Ganda..
and welcome to A4A 

[Salkeela]

Hello all. 

I'm a gardener in N.Ireland.  Currently I grow my own in my own back garden - lucky me.  However I have an ad placed on Landshare at the moment as I want to share the space I have with others.

At first I thought it would be good to offer space close to the house - but we also keep ponies (and often have young ones in the yard) and I quickly realised that families coming through our yard would be a madness. 

So I've outlined an area in one of our fields, that is accessed by a separate laneway.  This will end up as more of an allotment arrangement than a landshare one now, as I now have costs such as fencing etc.  I have also discovered I must make a planning application for the change of land use!  (Which COSTS!) So obviously I must charge folk in order to cover those costs!

I was just wondering if anyone had any experience of setting up allotments in N.Ireland?  Alternatively if any folk are interested in a space - I have 4 interested parties so far but hope to set up around 10 plots.  Realistically I don't think I will have everything sorted until next growing season....

Any advice welcomed!

Sally

[Unwashed]

I have also discovered I must make a planning application for the change of land use!

Hi Sally

I don't know how planning works in NI, but I have a very strong idea that in England 1. you can use any land of any planning designation for agriculture because it considered development, and 2. allotments count as agriculture - so you can make an allotment anywhere - but a domestic vegetable garden isn't an allotment, and it's possible the planners don't quite understand what you're suggesting.  Have the planning department told you that you have to apply for planning permission? 

[Salkeela]

I've looked at past Planning Office applications and read the lists of approvals etc.

As far as the Dept of Agriculture are concerned there is no difference- and on our farm survey everything can still be returned as agricultural land. 

However it seems that the Planning Office have different regulations and that an application to change agricultural land to allotments is required.  A couple such applications have been published recently.  I have emailed our divisional planning office, but so far had no reply.