Kitchen Garden Forum

We have a facebook page "savebarnettwoodlaneallotments" or
something similar not sure exactly.I am also told that we have
twitter, but the MVDC (council) have been looking at it.
We have also been communicating with someone called Sara
from the Watford allotments.
I see they have a website, I wonder if we should have one.
Have now downloaded allotments act.
My gardener neighbour says the relocation site soil is terrible, he
couldn't think of a worse place.
bicci

Hi Bicci

Try these

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo6/14/31

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Edw7/8/36

Hope these are of some help

Regards

Arnie

Thanks Arnie,
Not sure I understand them though.
Bicci

bicci. Go to my earlier letter. Join The National Allotments Society en Mass, [it is cheaper] Let their legal dept advise you.It is surprising how a letter from a law firm will make the Council step back and think again. At least they will know they have a fight on their hands, and you are not going to be a push-over.

Hi Bicci
I see from Google Earth that you have a large field next to your plots. I wonder whether
your allotments are a "sell off" from this, many decades ago? Perhaps the present owners could help in tracing the origins, though perhaps the Mole Valley council (which I also come under) owns the field? The Planning Policy Manager at MV is Jack Straw, if that's any help.
John N

Hi John,
the field you are probably looking at is owned by Merton College Oxford.
It is because they want to sell a number of fields around the allotments that the council have decided to join in and see who would be interested in developing the whole area.
Merton College own a lot of land in and around Leatherhead, including the proposed new site.
See the http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/leatherheadbypasssite
We suspect that the new site is big enough to fit other allotments in.
Our group email is greenhearts@hotmail.co.uk
I think we might try contacting local celebrities.
Off to the plot for the gossip now.
Bicci

If you are unaware of who owns the allotment land, you can always request details from the Council under The Freedom of Information Act.You can also ask to see if there are any restrictive covenants written into the deeds that state that the land must always be used for allotments,this could be so if the land was "gifted" for that sole purpose.

Also,if the land was bought specifically for allotment use then it is a "Statutory" site and can only be sold off with the permission of the Secretary of State.

Hello Mike,
We have been having drop in sessions with the council this week, they
have been well attended by many angry local residents.
Due to article in local paper about the waterlogging of proposed new site, the council have now looked at the site and reduced the available area
as they have realised it is a flood plane.
The history of the allotments is very complicated, we are still trying to
sort it out.
It seems that although they are "statutory allotments," because they were awarded under the inclosure act in 1865, they can be sold without
permission of the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries.
There are many changes in regulations over the years, the council said
last night, that because a large part of this land was sold off and built on thirty years ago, it set a precedent.
The money was used to build the Leisure Centre.This is the last part of the Poors allotments that was once a vast area of Leatherhead.
If development goes ahead including the Merton College land it will probably mean alterations to the M25 junction and the By-pass.
There will be massive changes to Leatherhead.
The council would like us to form a group to look after the allotments
ourselves, this may happen wherever we are as this has made us get
together more than we already did.There are 162 tenanted plots, many
are half plots now due to high demand.
I will post further news when it happens.
We have been on Radio Surrey, in local papers, many journalists, the CPRE the residents association are interested.
It's not over til it's over.
greenhearts@hotmail.co.uk

You are being fed rubbish.

If they are "Statuatory Allotments" then they should be covered by the Allotments Act.

Look at http://www.allotmoreallotments.org.uk/index.htm and involve the National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners

Hello Bicci
In my experience you need to take a reasonable approach with these sort of people but always be ready to play hardball with them when necessary. Don't accept any of this 'setting a precedent' and 'regulations have changed over the years' stuff - always ask for documentary evidence of some sort. These people work to various plans, directives, policies, regulations and so on so you should ask for some justification for their answers. Don't be fobbed off with everything that they come up with. If you can't accept anything they are telling you ask for the matter to be referred to a higher authority for an opnion.
You will need though to form a proper group so that the council has someone to deal with.
If possible try to see the records of 30 years ago when the council say some land was sold off beause a lot of the ground that you are trying uncover may well have been dealt with then.

John

PS Beware of all this stuff about land needed for houses etc. Around here developers are putting in for planning permission and getting it because councils are under pressure to make land available. They are then sitting on the land saying they can't start building because people aren't able/cant afford to buy new houses because of the economic situation. They are simply building up a land bank waiting for house prices to rise again.

Hello John,
I heard some useful information from the residents Association this morning, they know a lot more about traffic, history and pollution!
A group of us were invited say a few words about our situation to
the Dorking Allotment Society in a couple of weeks time, they are
following our plight in their local paper too,and they will be sending
a letter to the Mole Valley District Council, they are under same
council as us.
The council were wrong about ownership of a wood recently, so
we will be double checking their claims of ownership.
Looks like years of wrangling about planning etc ahead of us, what
a waste of time.
MVDC said they hadn't spent much on this yet, they wanted the developers to spend their money on investigations, but we are
now told they have spent £50,000 already.
We await a 50 page proof of ownership from the council, they say
it will take a while!
I'm going to the residents Assoc. meeting on Monday, I've learnt
so much already about local history etc. so much more to learn.
Bicci

How are things going Bicci?
Are the council dragging their feet and hoping you will all get fed up and stop bothering them!
I think that an interested person can request the planning dept. for details of any pre-planning discussions that they may have had with developers - would be worth seeing if this is possible.
Let us know if you have made any progress.
John

Hello John,
We formed our Leatherhead Poors Allotment Society and joined NSALG.
We have had a legal person asking the council questions as to how they
registered the land in their name in 2007.
I believe they have now said they won't answer any more of his questions, as it is too expensive!
He will now work with NSALG.
The council have had a wildlife survey done, I'm told things were left on allotments to collect creatures underneath, but nobody told us so the items were removed as rubbish!
We have collected 2,000 signatures on a petition to be presented at a
meeting soon, we are waiting to be told when.
The developers have been narrowed down to four I believe.
Our MP Paul Beresford has not bothered to answer our emails.
The Guardian newspaper interviewed us recently, the article will be
published tomorrow 1st June also online, we were on BBC Radio Surrey in April.
No we are not going away.Battling on!
That's all for now, Bicci

bicci. Best of luck on your tussle with the local Council. Remember the old adage. Lose the battle. But win the war.

Thanks Shallot Man,
We are not alone in fighting the council for our allotments.
Here is the link to the Guardian article.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/ ... allotments

Bicci :