Topic: Birmingham City Council inquiry calls for more allotments in city

[Squash64]

The report below was in today's Birmingham Mail -


Birmingham City Council inquiry calls for more allotments in city
Nov 11 2010
 by Neil Elkes, Birmingham Mail

THE redevelopment of the derelict Selly Oak Hospital should include allotments, according to a major inquiry by city councillors.

The popularity of growing-your own fruit and vegetables has soared due to increased interest in fresh, organic produce and a general hike in food prices.

Birmingham currently has more than 7,000 plots spread over 115 separate sites which are all made use of, and many have long waiting lists.

An investigation into allotments, chaired by Coun Roger Harmer (Lib Dem, Acocks Green), has also recommended that the use of allotments in the city should be encouraged by holding an annual conference of its 80 allotment associations.

And it said that they should be advised on making Lottery funding bids for improvements. Allotments are costing the council about £410,000 this year, with rental income at £95,000.

Therefore the taxpayer is subsidising the service to the tune of £315,000.

The inquiry found that rents should increase.

The average standard allotment rent in Birmingham is £28 per year compared to an average of £40-£50 in other major cities.

And the review recommended that plotholders take a more active role in management to cut costs.

Coun Roger Harmer, who chaired the inquiry, said: “Many of the council’s policies are still based on an assumption of a decline in allotments.

“We believe they need reform, to be fit for purpose in an era of growth.

“In particular we have recommended planning policies are revised and that we positively plan to increase plots where communities need them.”

[elvis2003]

yeah Betty,its about time you took an active role in managing your site!  ;)  ;)  ;) ;) ;)

[tomatoada]

Thanks for posting this.

[gp.girl]

Nice to see the need and realities of the situation recognised by the powers that be, now awaiting action but not while holding my breath ::)

[Squash64]

yeah Betty,its about time you took an active role in managing your site!  ;)  ;)  ;) ;) ;)

Yes, I'm looking forward to it!   ;)

[Robert_Brenchley]

Birmingham have been moaning for several years that allotment rents didn't even cover the cost of the water supply to the sites. They're going up steeply over the next few years - I'm not complaining since they were extremely low compared to other cities, and we're making representations about the possibility of paying by installments - and if the cost to the Council of maintaining them goes down, they should be prepared to look at the obvious need for new plots in return. The current waiting list for my site fluctuates a bit, but it averages about 20 at the moment, with a waiting time of a couple of years, and tends to get longer year by year.

[Unwashed]

Birmingham have been moaning for several years that allotment rents didn't even cover the cost of the water supply to the sites.

Didn't it turn out that they'd made that up?

we're making representations about the possibility of paying by installments

No representations necessary, it's your right to pay quarterly under  S.10(2) Allotments Act 1950.

[Squash64]

we're making representations about the possibility of paying by installments

No representations necessary, it's your right to pay quarterly under  S.10(2) Allotments Act 1950.

Our site is self-managed and we collect the rent on behalf of the council.  We do this on all the Sundays in October, five this year.

The Treasurer and I spend at least three hours on each of the Sundays waiting for tenants to come to the pavilion to pay their rent, and then more time at home doing the paperwork to send to the Council.

 I suppose I am being selfish, but if there were quarterly rent collections it would dramatically increase the time we spend collecting it and the form-filling afterwards.

I appreciate that some people will have difficulty paying, especially when the rent rises to £75 in three years time.  Maybe a solution would be for tenants to put aside a set amount each week/month themselves, and then pay it at the annual rent collecting time.

[tonybloke]

as a land-owning association, our water charges are based on the cost of water to the association. The water bills work out at £6 per plot for water (no Hoses to be attached to stand-pipes) we have percussion taps (push-top taps) on all of our stand-pipes, this avoids a lot of wastage of water.

[picman]

Thanks for the post, were hoping for a more supportive and progressive approach from our council after a department change there, not holding my breath , they are soooooo slow and wasteful of our taxes...

[Unwashed]

Our site is self-managed and we collect the rent on behalf of the council.  We do this on all the Sundays in October, five this year.

The Treasurer and I spend at least three hours on each of the Sundays waiting for tenants to come to the pavilion to pay their rent, and then more time at home doing the paperwork to send to the Council.

 I suppose I am being selfish, but if there were quarterly rent collections it would dramatically increase the time we spend collecting it and the form-filling afterwards.

I appreciate that some people will have difficulty paying, especially when the rent rises to £75 in three years time.  Maybe a solution would be for tenants to put aside a set amount each week/month themselves, and then pay it at the annual rent collecting time.

I quite appreciate the problem, but the legislation is very clear:  Not more than a quarter’s rent for land let by a council ... shall be required to be paid in advance ..., so you just can't contract out of it.  I'm sure some would sooner pay once a year, but you can't insist.  You also have to give your tenants 40 days to pay as well (S.30(2) Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908).

Do any sites bill via PayPal yet, as that would save time and effort all round?

[Unwashed]

I want to say though, I think BCC have made an excellent move in encouraging greater tenant involvement.  Contrast that with Newbury Town Council who spend around £200 per plot mostly on administration, provide no facilities, charge some of the most expensive rents you'll find - and won't recognise any site association that speaks up or even so much as asks to talk about self-management.

[Squash64]

I agree Simon, BCC Allotments Dept. does an excellent job, especially considering that there are only two people working in the office and one Allotments Officer for the whole of Birmingham which has 115 sites and almost 7,000 plots. 

[Robert_Brenchley]

BCC are examining the possibility of card payments, so there's no reason why they can't come up with a mechanism for payment by instalments (I know it's a right, but we need to get them to make it easy for people) at the same time. I've long thought the current procedure for rent collection was impossibly outdated, but we need to ensure that self-managed sites still get their cut of the rent even if payments end up going straight to the Council.