MINUTES OF THE JUNE 2018 MEETING OF ABAS
Held at
Astley Bridge Cricket Club on June 19th 2018The meeting commenced at 8.00 p.m.
Present: 16 people from 9 sites
Apologies from: Terry Farrell, Carol Deplitch,
Carol Barlow
Minutes of the May Meeting
The Minutes
having been posted on the Association Blog-site for the required period and
there being no objection, the minutes were adopted as full and correct.
Matters Arising
We have
been informed that the Revised 2018 OMA Documents are being rolled out
incrementally. The Council are offering site meetings to discuss OMA issues.
Still no
details on Council Allotments Budget
We have
not received an updated “Refresher Monitor” but the Council report the current
position to be:
On 12/06/2018-
within Bolton there were:
86 plots
lettable and vacant, of which 33 are on OMA sites and 53 are on non OMA sites –
members on OMA sites were asked to review
how quickly they are (given points raised elsewhere) re-letting plots once they
become vacant. Re-letting on non-OMA sites is the direct responsibility of the
Council (see below)In addition 41 plots are held by plot-holders on probation
The
Council waiting list currently stands at 623 – this figure was challenged in that members believe that it contains a
number of “buddies” who technically are not waiting for a plot but are acting
as assistants to existing tenants.
In 2017 89
tenancies were given up or terminated and the Council issued 86 new tenancies
The question was raised by some members as to
why we (as Abas) should be concerned about the size of the Borough waiting list
and indeed the other data above. The Committee would argue that there are (at
least) two reasons:
a) 86 vacant plots represent 9% of the rental
income which supports the Allotments Budget (estimated at around £30k-£32k per
annum). 41 probationary plots (on which
no rent is collected) represent a further 4%. Assuming the average length of
probation is 3 months then roughly that represents some £3,000 in income which
if it were being collected could be spent on the Allotments service. Members
may recall that the Head of Service has previously estimated that the sum of
£5k could provide sufficient part-time staff to resolve the communications and
administration issues currently affecting member secretaries.
b) The overall waiting list provides a measure of
the unmet demand for allotment plots within the Borough. As the local
“federation” – part of the NAS – part of our remit is to pressure the Council
to increase allotment provision to meet more of that demand.
The
Council is currently targeting non-OMA Sites with Letting Issues
a)
Longworth Rd., Egerton has a large waiting
list and 16 vacant plots but drainage / flooding problems have led to a large
number of refusals over winter. The Council will renew re-letting efforts as
ground dries. The Council are recommending raised beds but many applicants
don’t want to incur the significant extra time, cost and effort involved. The
Council are offering plots at nil charge until October.
b)
Cemetery Rd., Farnworth has a large waiting
list and 7 vacant plots. However many are stock plots and people on the waiting
list want cultivation plots. The Council are looking to convert plots and
recommending raised beds. The Council are again offering plots at nil charge
until October.
There are still concerns about the Council’s
response to Monthly Reports.
It is
generally felt that the Council is responding well to “physical” matters –
water leaks etc. but that the administrative system that services re-lets,
mal-cultivation etc. is not functioning. Concern centres on Communications
between sites and “Allotments”.
The Council
accept the importance of Secretaries knowing that date for BoT2s so that they
may schedule re-inspections etc. The Council has asked us to remind secretaries
that the date a BoT3 goes out does not indicate when a plot can be re-let. The
Council has to complete the legal process and will then inform the Society that
the plot is available for re-letting.
The Head
of Service has confirmed that BoTs WILL be issued in response to monthly
reports, and has asked that staff now either include the date they have been
sent in the response to the monthly report OR send a subsequent email to
confirm the date. Feedback from sites suggests that this second phase (e.g.
informing secretaries that BoT2s have been sent or that plots are available for
re-letting) has not been happening.
We are
advised that the Council is currently focusing on advising secretaries when new
tenancy agreements have been sent out. (On
a related issue one site at least reports continuing delay in getting Allotments
to send a tenancy agreement to a tenant.)
The
Council has subsequently emailed us stating that they acknowledge that they are
behind with the agreed process at the moment. Due to the recent unseasonably
good weather after a wet winter they are having to deal with a significant
increase in customer enquiries in relation to mowing, pest control, and last
week high winds. This has impacted on time available for other works, including
allotments.
An article on page 23 of the Bolton News of
20/06/18 shows the pressure that the “green spaces” section is under from
residents and elected members. The message is clear, if Societies (and Abas) want
allotments to have a higher priority, then they should lobby ward councillors,
attend Area Forums etc.
The Abas committee has asked that site
secretaries tell us (with details plot numbers, names etc.) of the cases that
are most vexing them when it comes to the Council dealing with mal-cultivation
and other ‘admin’ tasks. We will compile a list and submit it on a regular
basis to the Allotments section. Such action was taken for two sites in the
last week, we await the outcomes and will report back.
ABAS Membership
A number
of societies have still not yet paid their annual subscriptions to the
Association.
Current
membership still stands at 399 plot-holders.
Bolton Allotments Competition 2018
First
Round Judging in the Fairhurst, Greenhalgh, New Tenant and Rosebowl
Competitions will take place in in week commencing 25th June. Second Round
Judging will take place in in week commencing 16th July
Abas Onion, Leek and Vegetable Show
The Annual
Vegetable Show will be held on Saturday 4th August at Trinity Church, Tonge Fold
There will
be 25 Vegetable Classes. The Show Schedules are almost ready for Print and will
be available shortly.Members are reminded that the Treasurer (Terry Farrell) is happy to give short talks on ‘Showing Vegetables’ if societies want this. He has already given one such talk.
NWCAA
Abas has
recently (see May minutes) drawn
members’ attention to the new NWCAA email address: nwcallotmentassociations@gmail.com .
The new NWCAA website is www.northwestallotments.btck.co.uk
However, we believe that the NWCAA website is
currently out of action.
The Chair
has tried to contact Alan Hull and Andy Percival and also the National HQ about
e.g. the “Best Allotment Comp”. He has received some 2017 entry details from
the Regional Representative of the NAS, Mr John Irwin. Mr Irwin’s email address
is Nw.nsalg@yahoo.co.uk
The Best
Allotment Competition is for “best” site and is well worth entering (and
winning!).
GDPR
General
Data Protection Regulation came into effect on 25 May 2018.
Abas has
contacted all names on its circulation list – the majority have now replied so that
we may continue to send out calling notices and bulletinsAnyone who is not receiving such bulletins and wishes to should contact the Secretary
GM SPATIAL PLAN
The
revised plan (due June 2018) has now been delayed (due to the May elections) It
will now appear in July and will be followed by 12 weeks consultation.
Subsequent to the meeting it was announced in the Press that the Plan will be
delayed until October pending revision of population forecast for the area
covered.
On a related issue the Chair has noted a
proposed development on the corner of Hatfield Rd and Shepherd X St. He is
concerned that from the outline drawing it covers the redundant bowling green
and seems to encroach onto the Allotments Site. He will monitor the planning
application when submitted.
One member reported that he had been informed
that a mobile toilet had been / was being removed from the Hatfield Rd. site. Abas will seek to find out if this is
correct and if so what the implications are.
WHAT’S ON IN 2018?
PLEASE
TELL US OF ANY EVENTS THAT YOU ARE PLANNING OR THAT YOU THINK WILL BE OF
INTEREST TO PLOT-HOLDERS
August
12th – Summer Festival and Show at Harpers Lane AllotmentsAugust 25th Open Day / Show at Moss Lea Allotments
September 8th – Open Day / Show at Settle St Allotments
Additional Item
Harpers Lane is intending to have a produce
market as part of its Summer Festival on August 12th.
If any plot-holders on other Bolton sites wish
to have a stall at that event could they please contact us at
boltonallotments2014@yahoo.co.uk for
details.
GRANTS ETC.
The
training session on completing submissions to Awards for All was held at the
Hub in Bolton Town Centre on June 11th. It was attended by 13 people
representing 7 member societies.Lesley Turner (Bolton MBC) ( lesley.turner@bolton.gov.uk ) and Helen Tomlinson (Bolton CVS)
( helen@boltoncvs.org.uk )have offered to assist with bid writing and proof reading etc. They can also help with standard policy documents e.g. on safeguarding which some funding bids may require.
ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Repeat Offenders
Members
are still concerned about what they term “repeat offenders” – tenants for whom
they repeatedly request BoT3s but on whom the Council appears unwilling to take
any action. There is a concern that “some
people” (for reasons right or wrong) seem not to be subject to the same
rules and standards on cultivation as the rest of the community. The existence
of these plots is often used by groups dissatisfied with their society as
evidence that the OMA system and even the Society itself are ineffective. There seems to be a need for the Council to
state clearly to Site Secretaries its reasoning in any case where a request to
serve a BoT is not actioned and fulfilled.
(There is also a related issue of people who
are served BoT2s who then do the minimum of work and wind up being served with
another BoT2 a couple of months later)
Tenants with a disability
The
discussion started with a question about the application of the mal-cultivation
procedures to tenants / plots where the plot-holder claimed their ability to
tend the plot was impaired by a disability either temporary or permanent.
In general we would argue that ensuring that
persons with a disability are not discriminated against when seeking or
cultivating a plot is the responsibility of the Council (as Landlord).
There seem three areas at issue –
a) Access –
is there a sufficient number of plots (either within the Borough or on the
applicant’s chosen site) which can be accessed by a person with the disability
of this applicant? This
might mean that site roads and perhaps allotment boundary paths need to be
upgraded. We would argue that the responsibility for funding and carrying out
such work is the responsibility of the Council. However, it was indicated (at
the Awards for All training session) that where a Society wished to step in and
assist an individual or a group such a project might be eligible to apply for
grant funding. Societies might wish to consider this. Such an initiative would
of course be entirely voluntary on the part of the society.
b)
Upkeep – who should take action and what
action should they take when disability means that a tenant cannot maintain and
cultivate their plot to the standards normally accepted? Effectively this means how should a Society
(on an OMA site) apply the mal-cultivation procedures? Hopefully any problems
arising which are caused by disability should be identified at the BoT1
(informal) stage. As above Societies might wish to consider what assistance
might be given and how this might be funded. However societies are not experts
in the effects of particular disabilities nor on the appropriate responses to
make and we would advise any secretary in this position to seek the advice of
the Council.
c) Additions – there may be instances where a
tenant (under the OMA agency system) seeks approval to e.g. erect a structure,
keep chickens etc. If the applicant feels
that a disability is relevant to their application they should be encouraged to
make this plain at the time of application. If the Society is unsure as to how
to take this information into account they should refer the application to the
Council together with any proposal they may wish to make to assist the tenant /
member.
Responsibilities towards non-members
Sites in
Bolton (whether OMA sites or not) are termed Direct-let sites (they are not
self-managing).
On such
sites the primary relationship is between tenant and the Council (as Landlord).As such a Society’s role can be twofold.
a) A Site Society on an OMA site may act as the Council’s agents in dealings with tenants on issues such as initial letting of plots, permission to keep chickens or bees, or permission to erect structures. In such dealings the Site Society must apply Council Policy to any application (it may not make its own rules or impose additional restrictions). In cases where that policy is unclear (as in the case of beekeeping) the Society should refer the application to the Council and request advice and clarification.
Where a Society’s judgement on an application is challenged / rejected by the applicant, the Society should advise the applicant of his / her rights as a tenant of the Council and inform them that they may appeal to the Head of Service who will make a final decision.
b)
There may be other matters in which a tenant
or tenants find themselves in dispute with the Council (or another body). In
such circumstances the Society may decide to or be asked to advise and
represent those tenants. The question
has been asked as to whether a Society has any obligation to represent a tenant
who is not a member of the Society. The Council has clarified that the terms of
the OMA do not require any Society to represent a non-member. The NAS has also
clarified that Societies have no obligation to non-members.
Non-members should deal with issues under the normal tenant / landlord relationship or through legal or other assistance.
It is also
clear that non-members have no rights to access services provided by the
Society whether the provision of manure or bark etc. or the coverage of a
society insurance policy. Non-members should be advised that they should seek
to clarify their own insurance position and make appropriate arrangements.
The position of a large site in Bolton
was raised.
This site
had raised two issues (below is a rough
summary of the advice given by members present) :
a)
The use of
CCTV – it was reported that a number of sites have experimented with
CCTV. It is essential if having the cameras etc. that this fact is clearly
signposted around the site and at gates etc. It was further reported that
“wild-life” cameras provide a practical and affordable means of providing a
similar for of cover. There are also alarm systems which will ring the mobile
of e.g. the Secretary if activity occurs on site. The problem with these is
finding someone willing to respond and go onto a dark, empty site on the middle
of the night to confront unknown adversaries! The best advice we can give is
that the Site Committee in question should contact their local PCSOs and seek
advice. It is likely that grant funding for security improvements could be
identified through CVS.
b)
Unlettable
plots
The site in question has no waiting lists and
a large number of large (in excess of 250 sq metres) plots which have become
very overgrown. The Council has suggested that these larger plots be split. The
advice given included:
a.
Survey these plots and determine whether any
plots or part of plots are in fact truly unlettable and determine what if
anything could bring these areas back into cultivation. The site Committee
should discuss these works with the Council and may (if it so wishes) either
ask the Council to carry out the work (they
after all will collect the subsequent rents!) or design a project to
conduct the work for which they can then bid for grant funding etc.
b.
Split any remaining areas according to the
accepted rules
i.
No plot of less than 125 sq metres should be
created
ii.
Any plot created should have direct access to
a site road or access path
c.
When embarking on a splitting exercise the
site committee should first agree the current site plan and plot numbering with
the Council. They should then confirm the revised (post-splitting) plan and
numbering system with the Council BEFORE re-letting vacant plots. This will
reduce subsequent problems of plot identification, issuing tenancy agreements
and billing.
MEETINGS SCHEDULE
The following
meetings are planned
Monday 9th
July
Monday
13th August
Monday
10th September
Monday 8th
October
Monday
12th November (THE AGM)
The
minutes of all meetings are posted on the blog site as soon as possible after
the event, we also post any other information we feel relevant to our members’
concerns to http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk
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