Topic: Nice Start to the Year - Not!

[borderbabe]

Hello, this is my first post on this Baord and its a sad one!.  I went to my lottie at the weekend and found out that my local council want to sell the site for housing.  I was directed here as you have some information that may help me and my fellow plot holders to try and fight the curse of the developers!

Can anyone give me an idea where to look?

From what I've seen so far there is lots to look at and even more to learn.

Thanks in anticipation. :D

[Jeannine]

Hi B Babe. let me the first to say  hi and welcome. There are plenty of folks on here who can give you valuable advice about your problem, so I will leave them to come along and help you.

From me just a lootie hug from Hull, stay aoround and make friends, we are a crazy bunch but we always have room for another one.

 XX Jeannine

PS you can ask me anything about growing squash !!

[borderbabe]

Thats good to know - I had a bad year with Squashes last year only managed to get one tiddler but it tasted great!

[manicscousers]

Hiya, borderbabe,welcome to the site.. don't they drive you mad, councils  >:(..if you google N.S.A.L.G  they're the national allotment association, they will have some advice for you, if you get a petition up, let us know, we'll all sign it  :)

[Uncle Joshua]

Link to N.S.A.L.G's website...

http://www.nsalg.org.uk/

[Lauren S]

Hello Border Babe and welcome to the best site for advice you can find. You made a great choice.
Like Manics said, if you get a petition going, I'm sure everyone will sign.  :)

Shout, holler and scream would be my advice. Get the local TV and press involved. Come out fighting, pitch forks and spades at the ready.

Keep us informed, please? and GOOOOOOD LUCK.

Lauren

[borderbabe]

Thanks for your messages and advice - we are getting the local press etc involved.  there are only 9 of us on the site and a couple of the chaps have been there over 30 years.  I think the council hope we will go away quietly - no chance.

I was going to write to other like mined and well known gardeners e.g. Alan Titchmarsh and even the Prince of Wales!  It might help if I can wave letters from them under the Council's nose.

[Jeannine]

Please as others have said start a government petition then post the fact that it is there, we will all sign online and many others will too, I forget the link to do it but someone will know.

XX Jeannine

Found it.          http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/new

[cambourne7]

HI and Welcome.

If there are only 9 of you i guess there are lots of vacant plots (or is it a tiny site).

Perhapse you can try some local advertising about your plight and if the council try to use the excuse that there not popular then i am sure you will get lots of people wanting a plot.

After christmas local media are desperate for non christmas and new year related news.

You can also call a extrodinary general meeting at the local council.

Take confort that your not alone and get the local MPs involved as there is an election comming!"!

http://www.saveouropenspaces.com/news.asp?intent=viewstory&newsid=4982
take not of the comment at the end of the link

Redbridge Council criticised in Parliament over allotment sales
Ilford South MP Mike Gapes tabled the following motion in the House of Commons today:

This House notes that Conservative controlled Redbridge Council has drawn up secret plans to sell off a large number of local land sites, including popular allotments and car parks in a desperate effort to raise up to £150 million; further notes that many of these sites are in Ilford South the most overcrowded and poorest part of the Borough, including allotments in Goodmayes Park extension and Vicarage Lane South; congratulates all those involved in the campaign by local residents again the secret Tory plans and welcomes the letter to the Member for Ilford South on 23rd March 2007 from the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Communities and Local Government, Baroness Andrews, which confirms that “where a statutory allotment is disposed of; the 1908 Allotment Act requires that any proceeds must be used for the purposes of allotments, and only surplus may be used for other purposes”; that Planning Policy Guidance 17 “provides protection of urban green spaces” and draws the attention of Redbridge Conservative Councillors to the statement of the Minister that “open spaces which local communities need should not be built on”.
Source: Website of Mike Gapes MP Ilford South

[VP]

Hiya,

Lots of people have given you far better advice than I've got for you, but I just wanted to say you have my support for any online petition you start.

It sounds like you've got a good campaign on the go already and I hope your site doesn't go the same way as that one booted out for the Olympics...

[saddad]

Hi BBabe... welcome to the site and good luck with the struggle, keep us informed and get a petition online...
 :)

[saddad]

HI B.Babe... welcome to the site and keep us informed of the struggle...
We are good at signing petitions...
 ;D
 :-[ thought I'd lost that.. sorry to repeat myself!!

[Lady of the Land]

Hi B. Babe

I am on a large site - were probably 180 plus plots. We had some of the land sold off for building about 2 years ago. They are just finishing off the homes with people moving in over the last month and over next couple of months.
We tried to oppose this - however only about 30 - 40 odd percent of allotments were taken up. This was what they went on. What is your situation with only 9 plot holders- do you have any vacant plots. The council apparently is obliged to provide allotments if there are a number of people wanting them - however they probably say they will provide them but they will be at another site they own.

Goodluck

[arphamoe]

A note of caution - the prospect of many councils riding roughshod over allotments is a real danger nationwide! It is vital that everyone with any sort of interest in allotments makes sure that major efforts are made to encourage take-up of vacant plots. Before our Town Council took over control of allotments about 4 years ago, the District Council who, at the time had responsibility, were operating a deliberate but concealed policy of discouraging take-up because they wanted to build on some of the sites.
The Town Council have built up full occupancy by advertising and using parts of the local tax precept to improve conditions to the extent there is now a waiting list - and we are in the Midlands where we are expecting a doubling of the size of housing in the next 10 years thanks to Govt policy so land is at a priority.
Its a long-term business but it needs commitment and enthusiasm otherwise the problems highlighted above in various contributions will befall many other sites.
We are still fighting over one site and the fight is going to arbitration to decide but without the enthusiasm of Town Councillors and an active Allotment Association, we could easily be going down the same road.
Keep up the pressure, use the local Press and MP's (they must be useful for some things, especially when elections are in the offing!) and don't let plots be lost by stealth.

[Robert_Brenchley]

There's a site in Birmingham that was down to a few plotholders; two of them went round the neighbourhood canvassing, and it's now out of the woods. Get to work and I bet you'll find people for the empty plots.

[borderbabe]

thanks again for the support.  The site is tiny - only 9 plots, fully let and all the plots kept well cultivated.  Our main problem being that its never been formally adopted as a statutory site and kept as a temporary site for over 40 years (deliberately?) by the council so they dont need the ok from government to sell - its up to us plot holders to stop them.

I've tanged with the council before and won so here we go again!! ;D ;D

[Jeannine]

There is something on the government petitions page  re sites that are not statutory, I just read it yesterday, go to the link I put on earlier and tap in allotments, then active ones, I am sure there is a petition for that generally, and a good time to start yours XX Jeannine

Just checked again, it is there, I have just signed it

[VP]

I've just read in our local paper that a site's under threat round here too. The irony is that the site was started when an older one was redeveloped for housing. Now they want to build houses on this one too  >:(

[VP]

There is something on the government petitions page  re sites that are not statutory, I just read it yesterday, go to the link I put on earlier and tap in allotments, then active ones, I am sure there is a petition for that generally, and a good time to start yours XX Jeannine

Just checked again, it is there, I have just signed it

Just signed it too - my first online petition!  ;D

[Suzanne]

I would have thought that regardless of the site being statutory or not, that the fact that you have had plot holders for 30 years mean that you have some tenancy rights.

I am sure that NSALG will be able to help with this one.