Minutes of the Abas Meeting August 8th 2016
Astley Bridge Cricket Club – the meeting commenced at 8.00 p.m.
Attendance: 20 people
from 12 sites
Minutes of the July
Meeting The minutes of the July meeting having been posted on the abas blog-site, the Committee’s proposal that the minutes be accepted was unanimously accepted.
Matters Arising
Following the July meeting the Committee emailed
(12.07.2016) Mr Russell with the following points
·
Clarification of the rules about fires on
allotments· Multiple Plots at the same address
· Bullying and Aggression on sites
· Mal-cultivation Notices
The Committee also requested that one of the periodic
Progress Review Meetings be arranged between abas and Mr Russell
No reply had been received by abas to this email by the time
of the meeting
Further on Fires
A comment was posted (14/07/2016) on the abas blog stating
that abas did not need to seek clarification as the abas minutes of 12/05/2014
stated that fires are allowed on sites provided this is within accordance with the
tenancy agreement.
The commentator does not seem to appreciate that abas is not
a rule-making or a policy-making body. Abas minutes (unless otherwise stated)
simply record the opinions / advice / conclusions of the Association /
Committee / meeting based on the knowledge / information available at the time
they are posted. They are not legally binding on member societies, tenants, the
Council etc. Also circumstances may change with time. Thus seeking and
publishing clarification of current Council policy is a sensible step
and indeed is a prime function of abas.
As the Comment also contained a remark about Mr Russell that
Comment was passed on to Mr Russell
Much of the Comment (and a subsequent further comment)
related to matters that are not the concern of abas.
However Mr Russell subsequently (19/07/2016) emailed Harpers
Lane Society about the fires issue
In that email Mr Russell stated that any local agreements
about fires can only be purely advisory.
The only enforceable rules seem to be those spelled out in
the Tenancy Agreement held by each individual plot-holder. There are however a
number of different versions of the Tenancy Agreement in circulation. Mr Russell
is obtaining a copy of the version held by the complainant. Mr Russell also
wished to check on the wording of the clause relating to ‘causing a nuisance’
contained in that version.
Following a discussion in which a number of variants of the
‘fires’ clause in differing Tenancy Agreements were highlighted and in which
the importance of the ‘nuisance’ clause and the role of Environmental Pollution
staff at Bolton BMBC was referred to, the
Chair requested that Society Secretaries send abas copies of any Rules on Fires
that they have.
The meeting then approved a motion by a member society that:
The abas committee (having
studied the rules in use throughout the Borough) approach Malcolm Russell with a proposal to form a steering group to
draft a form of words about fires on allotments that is acceptable to the
societies and Council Departments and which could then be enforceable under
Council rules.
On-going Concerns
Moss Lea – There has been no progress on the decision on communal
vs individual greenhouses, but the Society has been assured Mr Russell has this
in hand. Other issues relating to Mal-cultivation Notices, inspections of
buildings etc. seem to be progressing satisfactorily.
Harpers Lane –Neighbourhood Services called (03/08/2016) to
say that Pest Control will be in touch about the rat problem shortly. Mr
Russell has also promised that the Council will look at repairs to the
Amenities Building door.
Florence Avenue – There has been no progress on the car park
Shepherd Cross St – No representative of SCS was present
General – The Council says it’s proceeding with
mal-cultivation notices and evictions – the view of societies is mixed. Harpers
Lane, Moss Lea and Smedley Avenue all report Breach of Tenancy notices being
sent. Tonge Moor reported that some Re-entry notices have been (or are being)
issued. However these notices were first asked for some 12 months ago. Tonge
Fold reported delays to Re-entry Notices being issued.
A number of societies are concerned that the Council does
not inform Secretaries when a notice (at whatever stage) has been sent. This
was broadened into a general complaint that the Council does not always inform
the Secretary when a tenant advises the Council directly that they are
terminating the tenancy and so the plot remains unlet for a longer period than
is needed.
Mal-cultivation and
empty plots (and the apparent lack of action on these) are key sources of conflict between tenants and Site Committees
(usually centring on ‘weedy’ plots affecting their neighbours).
Better Communication
between the Allotments Section and Site Secretaries is needed.
Break-ins
At Dealey Rd. the surrounding fence has been breached and
there were a number of shed break-ins. There have also been break-ins at Tonge
Fold, Florence Avenue and Tonge Moor Rd. The meeting again stressed the need
for every individual affected to report the incident to the police.
The Committee were
requested to contact PCSO Sandra Furnival at Middlebrook to see if she is still
trying to collate allotment crimes.
Any other issues?
There was a report from Moss Lea of two individuals in a van
coming onto the site trying to sell ‘generators’. The Secretary had taken a
note of the registration number of the vehicle. Other societies were asked to
keep their eyes open.
Bolton Onion Leek and
Vegetable Show
The
Bolton Onion, Leek and Vegetable Show will take place on August 20th
2016 at Trinity Methodist Church, Tonge Fold. Bolton BL2 6BH
Entries
may be brought to the event between 10.30 a.m. and 12.00 p.m.
The
Show Hall will be closed for judging between 12.00 p.m. and 2.00 p.m.The Show Hall will then open to the public from 2.00 p.m. to 4.00 p.m.
The Prize Giving will be at 4.00 p.m.
Schedules
etc. are now available from The Show Secretary, Mrs Margaret Farrell, 13 Romer
St., Bolton, BL2 6BG Tel: 0785 394 9570
The
Schedule has also been displayed on the blog-site abas2014.blogspot.co.uk
Schedules
may also be obtained by emailing boltonallotments2014@yahoo.co.uk
Terry
is happy to provide advice on staging vegetables etc. 07863 933064
The Mini Farmers Market featuring Cheese,
Honey, Local Veg and Ice Cream will be open from approx. 10.00 a.m. The Café
(run by the Church) will also be available from 10.00 a.m.
Bolton Allotment
Competitions
The results of the Bolton Allotment Competitions were now
available. A full listing has been posted on the blog-site. It is important to
remember that it is only the FINAL judging score that determines the position
of the entrant.
FAIRHURST TROPHY
1st David
Urmston (Sapling Rd.)2nd Jean Dyson (Sapling Rd.)
3rd Ann Amor (Tonge Moor rd.)
FRED
GREENHALGH TROPHY
1st Carol
Barlow (Sapling Rd.)2nd Mike & Mary Marsh (Nasmyth St., Horwich)
3rd John & Carol Dainty (Nasmyth St., Horwich)
NEW TENANTS
TROPHY
1st Clair
& Kevin Beswick (Harpers Lane)2nd Jo & Frank Mather (Tonge Moor Rd.)
3rd Emma Beasley (Harpers Lane)
ROSEBOWL
1st Dealey Rd.
The Harrogate Trip
The Trip to the Harrogate Show will take place on Sunday
18th Sept. This was the “Final Call” for names and monies. If numbers do not improve the trip may be cancelled.
The Allotted
Exhibition
The Allotted Art Exhibition has now closed. The exhibition
ran for 4 weeks rather than the expected 6 weeks as the management of the
Market Place wanted the gallery space back for new paying tenants. In its 4
week run the exhibition attracted just over 800 visitors. The booklet of
essays, stories and poems inspired by Allotments, “the back of the seed packet”
will be on sale at the Onion, Leek and Vegetable Show.
What’s on?
Events
Include:
13/08 –
Craft & Produce Fair – Florence Avenue
14/08 – Open
Day – Sapling Rd27/08 – Allotment Society Show – Moss Lea
28/08 – Mini-Show & Barbecue – Shepherd’s Cross St
11/09 – Open Day, Show and Market, Harpers Lane
Contributing to the
blog-site
As some of those present were aware a series of comments were
placed on the blog-site after the July minutes had been posted. (These comments had since been deleted).We did not feel it was appropriate to discuss the contents of these comments at this meeting, but we did want to establish some ground rules for contributing to the ‘blog’.
As a temporary measure the administrators have re-set the comments facility so that any comment is routed through a committee member for ‘moderation’ before it can appear on the blog.
Members agreed that this arrangement should be made permanent.
Any other contributions can be emailed to the Secretary who
(given Committee approval) will then post them on the blog.
Requests for amendments to the minutes should be emailed to
the Secretary and must cite a member who was present at the meeting to which
the minutes relate. If members wish to question matters reported they should
inform the Secretary who will schedule the issues either under ‘Matters
Arising’ or as separate agenda items for the next meeting.
Requests for additional items on the agenda should be
emailed to the Secretary at least 7 days before the meeting in question
Abas feel that any items on the blog should relate to matters
within the remit of abas.
Abas is an association of Allotment Societies (a Federation
in NAS terms)
Abas is concerned
only with allotment matters
Abas’ prime concern
is with issues relating to the collective interests of societies and
plot-holders (primarily in negotiation with third parties, primarily the
Council)
Abas may take a role
in issues between individual societies and third parties (e.g. the Council)
if invited to do so by the society in
question and where the third party agrees to abas’ involvement.
Abas may take a role
in issues between individuals and third parties (e.g. the Council) if invited to do so by that individual’s
society and where the third party agrees to abas’ involvement.
Abas does not seek
any role in issues between individuals and their site societies (nor between
individual plot-holders)
In some cases above it may be appropriate to involve the
NWCAA and NAS
The meeting agreed that this defined abas’ remit.
Any Other Business /
Date of Next Meeting
The next meeting is on 12th September at Astley Bridge
Cricket ClubStart Time 8.00 p.m.
