OCTOBER 2018 MINUTES

Minutes of the Meeting of Abas Monday 8^th October 2018 at Astley Bridge Cricket Club

The meeting commenced at 8.00 p.m.

PRESENT: 21 representatives from 12 sites

Apologies: Dorothy Kay (Tonge Fold), Carol Barlow (Sapling Road), Kiye Simister (Harpers Lane)

MINUTES OF THE SEPTEMBER MEETING 

The Minutes having been posted on the Association Blog-site and there being no corrections anyone wished to make, the meeting moved to adopt the minutes as correct.

MATTERS ARISING 

Road Planings – Abas has passed to the Council three requests for the supply of Road Planings (Harpers Lane, Shepherd’s Cross Street, Tonge Fold). We understand that a further request has been received by Allotments from Florence Avenue. Allotments have said thye is waiting for the water bills to come in so that they knows how much remains in the budget for schemes using these planings

Hatfield Road

Hatfield Rd is a non-OMA site and not a member of Abas. It has (on paper) 27 plots
Following a site visit by Terry and Jeff – the Council issued 5 BoT2s and a further 9 “neglected” plots were subsequently identified as “untenanted”.
Allotments tried to get Community Payback (CP) to take over the task of clearing the 9 untenanted plots, but CP felt the task was “too big for them”
Terry and Jeff did a second survey following the expiry of the BoT2 “improvement period”. They reported progress to the Allotments section – 
No further involvement by Abas is anticipated

Non-OMA sites in general

“Allotments” have again stated that they do not have the resources to respond to request for information etc. from non-OMA sites on a regular basis.
There was a suggestion that Abas becomes a central collection point for all such requests which we could then aggregate and send to them in a format rather like the Monthly Reports submitted by Site Secretaries on OMA sites. Whilst we are willing to help individual sites on an ad-hoc basis, we are reluctant to take on this role for two main reasons:
1) we don’t have the resources either
2) we would be reliant on Allotments providing the answers to non-OMA sites issues in a prompt and acceptable manner, and thus we feel there is a danger of Abas becoming a football getting kicked by both sides.

OMA Roll-Out

We understand that the revised OMA Agreement (post April 2018) is now in force at all OMA sites save one.

Paths on Allotments

It was clarified that statements as to which paths should be used for access and who had responsibility for the maintenance of individual paths applied only to one case at one site and thus the item was withdrawn.

Bullying

The question of bullying (or more precisely on-site conflict) has been raised.
It is felt that the current clauses in the Tenancy Agreements need clarifying and strengthening
MR has suggested that he can work with Abas to establish a clearer policy on dealing with issues.

We are looking at the following situations:

·         “Bullying” / “Harassment” of plot-holders (individually or in groups) by Secretaries and Committees
·         “Bullying” / “Harassment” / “Intimidation” of Secretaries and Committees by Plot-holders (individually or in groups)
·         “Bullying” / “Harassment” / “Intimidation” of a plot-holders or group of plot-holders by another individual plot-holder or group of plot-holders

Abas has contacted the NAS and we have been told that they hope to publish a new extended “Code of Conduct” on these issues in November this year. If they do this could form the basis for discussions with the Council

THE NAS

During the process of the Secretary asking the NAS about a Bullying / Conflict Policy the NAS made two comments:-
1. That Abas had not responded to their questionnaire to “Federations” – this was not surprising since we never received one – they not having updated our contact address “for some years”
2. That only 6 of the 17 “associations / societies” in membership of Abas are recorded as being members of the NAS

In respect of 1) the Secretary has since received, completed and returned a questionnaire to NAS HQ.

We think 2) reflects past NAS / NWCAA concerns about Federations providing “NAS services / benefits” to non-NAS members “on the cheap”

NWCAA

Terry and Jeff will attend the Regional Meeting in Crumpsall on October 21st which has been called by the Regional Rep to discuss the future of the NWCAA

ABAS MEMBERSHIP

2018/2019 Membership Subscriptions are now due. These should (where possible) be paid to the Treasurer at or before the AGM in November. We recognise that some societies may not be able to meet this timetable and would therefore request that subscriptions be paid at or before the March 2019 Meeting of Abas.

REPORTING ON COUNCIL PERFORMANCE ON BOT NOTICES

If Abas is to try to hold the Council to account on its performance in processing BoT Notices etc. then Abas needs hard data. The only way we can get hard data is from our member societies
We have asked societies to copy us in on their Monthly Reports (but this doesn’t seem to be working), we have received so far 4 Monthly Reports plus two apologies for delay
We are now going to try to develop a form which Societies can use to provide us with the data we need.
These forms should be in use from April 2019
These forms will need processing and this will be a further call on our resources (with implications for matters to be raised later).

THE HANDOVER PACK

Abas has agreed with Allotments that we will try to develop (for the start of the 2019 “season”) a checklist for retiring / succeeding secretaries and treasurers as to what (minimum) information should be handed over when one succeeds the other. It is our hope that we can achieve this during the winter break and that some (if not all) current secretaries will help by proof-reading etc. the first drafts

GM SPATIAL PLAN

It looks as if the revised plan (due June 2018) will be further delayed (beyond October 2018) due to lower than expected area population projections and (yet to be published) changes to the government formulae for calculating housing need. 

We have been in contact with the Salford Federation about the report that Salford City had granted planning permission to a development provided an area was set aside for allotments. The Salford Federation have checked with their Council and the facts are true as is the fact that although the development is in Salford the land offered for allotments is in Bolton. As previously reported it is alleged that Bolton are resisting this.

THE AGM

In preparation for both the AGM and the continuing operation of Abas in the future the Committee invited members to think about nominations for two groups
The ABAS Executive Committee – The Officers (Chair, Secretary and Treasurer) plus 3-4 other Committee members.
As matters stand it looks as if Abas will have to elect a new Secretary for the 2019 season.
There is an argument that the Secretary’s role has grown too large for one volunteer and that we could / should look at structures which would share out the Secretary’s role between one or more office holders.
The “Shadow Committee” – membership of the Shadow Committee has two functions a) a familiarisation role with the implied intention that members will move into the Officers roles in the future and b) long term thinking and planning about Abas, allotments and relations with Bolton MBC

We hope that members will give consideration to putting forward nominations at the AGM for these roles for the 2019 season.

WHAT’S ON IN 2018?

October 14th Local Produce Market at Harpers Lane Allotments

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Two items had been added to the agenda

HISTORIC MAL-CULTIVATION OFFENDERS

There had been reports that the Council has offered (to one Site Secretary) that all “Historic Mal-Cultivation Offenders” on their site, will receive a letter from the Council suggesting that they relinquish their plot as they have apparently demonstrated that they are unable to consistently maintain them to an adequate standard. (The phrase “Repeat or Persistent Offenders” is also used by some societies.

The meeting had the following concerns:

• What is the definition of an “Historic Mal-Cultivation Offender”?
• How are they to be identified and by whom?
• What happens if they refuse to quit?
• Will this new system be offered to all OMA sites?
• How does the system relate to the established BoT system?

It was reported that the Historic Mal-cultivation Offenders letters had also been offered to a second site.

There was a discussion about persons who could not cultivate their plots adequately due to a long term illness or physical condition. The Committee’s view was that where the condition was temporary such cases should be identified at the BoT1 stage of the Mal-cultivation system, some agreement should be reached and thus they should never become the subject of BoT2s or BoT3s, and thus should not appear on the “Historic Offenders Radar”. It was accepted that where such conditions persisted over a number of seasons some action might be needed. The Committee feel that Site Secretaries etc. are not (in the main) medically qualified and should not be making judgements about a plot-holder’s physical ability to work a plot. Where such matters arise they should be referred “up” to the Allotments section.

The Secretary was instructed to send the questions listed above to Allotments.

The following reply has been received from Malcolm Russell (10^th October 2018)

I don't know where this idea of historic mal-cultivation has come from. The only thing we have done is amend our BOT2 letter for those sent in September to remind those people that the rent is coming due so if they are thinking about terminating let us know. I have said this when visiting sites recently. We did this last year.

MONTHLY REPORTS

There are concerns about reports that the Allotments section has stated that it does not expect to be receiving Monthly Reports from Site Secretaries during the Winter Season (defined as October to March/April).

The following questions were raised:

• Does this mean that Allotments will not process Monthly Reports during the Winter period or respond to the requests for actions contained within them?
• Does this mean that Allotments will therefore not send out or action any BoT2 or BoT3 during this period?
• Does that mean that any BoT actions in process will lapse? And does this mean that any mal-cultivation procedures will have to be restarted by site secretaries at the BoT1 stage in March / April?
• Does that mean that any “probationers” who complete their probation period during this season cannot complete Tenancy Registration Forms and thence Tenancy Agreements etc.? Does this mean that (effectively) probation periods now run through until March 2019?

 The Secretary was instructed to send the questions listed above to Allotments.

The following reply was received from MR on 10/10/2018

We've said the same thing about winter reports for a number of years i.e we don't expect them over the winter.

We will continue to deal with terminations and new tenancies but will not issue BOT2s after the end of September. A number of these will now be identified as BOT3 in October and will be actioned accordingly. We would suggest that any sites who have other plots that have had nothing done by the March or April inspection (depending on the weather) can consider going straight to BOT2 if they want at that time.

Hope this clarifies things.

The Meeting however had decided that Site Secretaries should continue to submit Monthly Reports throughout the year. If no response is received to an item then it should be repeated in the following months Monthly Report (preferably highlighted in red or some similar manner).

A question was raised about persons with a criminal record – should they be offered allotment plots. The Committee's opinion was clear that it is no part of a Society’s responsibilities to vet the persons put forward from the waiting list by the Council, the Council determines who is a valid applicant and that is the end of it. As far as abas is aware there are no questions about Criminal Records etc. in the Council’s Application Procedure.

A member then raised the question of those on the “Sex Offenders’ List” as children often come onto the site (e.g. in school or other parties). Again the Committee’s view is that (in the case of organised groups) those responsible for those children should carry out a risk assessment before they bring the children onto the site (indeed Societies should request that they do this before granting permission for visits). It was felt that there was some confusion between the vetting of volunteers who would “work” with children and vulnerable adults and vetting the general population on the site. The former would fall within a society’s responsibility if the activity is organised by the Society, the latter doesn’t.

MEETINGS SCHEDULE

The following meetings are planned
Monday 12th November (THE AGM)

The AGM is a particularly important meeting because of the election of officers and the fact that it precedes the “long” winter break

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

http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk

MINURES OF THE SEPTEMBER MEETING

ABAS Meeting – 10^th September at Astley Bridge Cricket Club

Present: 21 representatives from 11 sites

Apologies from: Audrey Woods (Haslam Park)

MINUTES OF THE AUGUST MEETING 
The Minutes having been posted on the Association Blog-site and there being no objections or requested alterations the minutes were adopted as correct?

MATTERS ARISING 

Road Planings – “Allotments” will accept requests for supplies of road planings which will be used by Societies as part of self-help schemes. Abas still expects to receive details of proposed schemes which require road planings or Council work which we will aggregate into a list to be supplied to “Allotments” for Autumn / Spring work (to date we have received one proposal from Tonge Fold)
Roll-Out of OMAs
We have been informed that (with the exception of one site) Allotments now regard the Revised (April 2018) OMA document as operational. Secretaries should note (if they have not already done so) that Revised Guidelines on Poultry and Structures were issue in May 2018.

Site Visits by the Head of Service may be requested where societies feel this would be advantageous

Hatfield Road
Following the visit by Jeff and Terry, “Allotments” served 5 BoT2 notices and a further 9 plots were identified as untenanted. Allotments asked Community Payback to carry out work on the untenanted sites but CP felt the job was too big for them. Jeff will be carrying out the follow-up inspections on the BoT2 plots on or about 17th September. Abas has to consider the resource implications of carrying out further work of this nature on behalf of the Council.

Monthly Reports and BoTs
(From examining the Revised OMA document in the light of recent events)

Potential Breaches of Tenancy

The Society to conduct a regular (no more often than monthly but it may be less frequent) inspection of the site between March and September (to be undertaken by a minimum of 2 members of the Site Society Committee) and to identify any issues of non-compliance with the terms & conditions of tenancy visible without entering onto the plot. In the first instance, if practicable, the Society will advise the tenant of the breach and request that the matter is addressed within 21 days. This is a BoT1. This notification should be recorded on the monthly inspection report. It is apparent that Allotments expect any plot found in an unsatisfactory condition to be recorded on the monthly inspection report. Where a BoT1 cannot be used - some wording such as “as this tenant is not a member of the society we have no means of contact” or “this tenant has not honoured previous informal arrangements” – for repeat offenders might be used. Inspection teams may wish to take photographs as evidence.

If at the subsequent monthly inspection of the site the outstanding breach of tenancy has not been addressed then the Society will take photographs to demonstrate the breach and advise the Council so that it may consider issuing a formal Improvement Notice for breach of tenancy. The Council will advise the Society when an improvement notice has been issued.  This is BoT2 and the period of grace given is 14 days – which may be extended IF the tenant asks for extra time. Note that the period of grace / improvement period starts from the date that the Council sends the BoT2 – the Council SHOULD inform the society of that date. Similarly the Council SHOULD inform the society of any extension given. Note that if you have requested a BoT2, we would advise the Society to conduct its routine inspections regardless as to whether the Council has informed you that a BoT2 has been sent. By constantly monitoring the condition of the plot, and reporting its condition and asking about the progress of the BoT2 in the Monthly Report, the Society can try to keep the mal-cultivation case “live”.

If the breach of tenancy has not been addressed at the time of the next regular inspection (following the end of the improvement period) then the Society will take photographs to demonstrate the continued breach and advise the Council so that it may consider issuing a Notice of Re-entry and terminate the tenancy as appropriate. The Council will advise the Society when a Notice of Re-entry has been issued and subsequently completed. This is BoT3. – the timetable is entirely in the Council’s hands and the Society is dependent on the Council carrying out the procedure and retaking possession, after which they will advise the Society that the plot may be re-let. As previously, during the period from the Society requesting the BoT3 until the Council informs the Secretary that the BoT3 has been served and the plot is available to re-let, the Society should continue to monitor the condition of the plot and report (with photograph) on its condition in the Monthly Report and should ask each month as to the progress of the BoT3.

ABAS MEMBERSHIP

2018/2019 Membership Subscriptions are now due. These should (where possible) be paid to the Treasurer at or before the AGM in November. We recognise that some societies may not be able to meet this timetable and would therefore request that subscriptions be paid at or before the March 2019 Meeting of Abas.

NWCAA –

Email to members
The (former Committee members of the North West Counties Allotment Association sent out the email below to (a number of) local allotment societies
Dear members,
Earlier this year the officers of the NW Counties Allotment Society took a decision to resign following issues with the National Allotment Society and its management team which could not be resolved, in fact they choose not to seek a resolution before or during the National AGM with the North West County Officers, so we felt we had no alternative to resign from the National.

The Hard work done in this region over the past few years including the great work that Andrea has done seems to be just ignored and not even recognised by the National Allotment Society, despite the largest growing region, the greatest number of meetings, communications, web site, emails etc. the NAS seems to have shown little respect for this hard work only lip service.

May we also remind you that the region will now longer have the fantastic services of the mentor as Alan has also resigned from the mentor post.
We had asked that the NAS to contact each member several months ago but it appears this still has not been done and emails are still coming to the North West so therefore this weekend we decided to contact you to advise you we are no Longer Part of the NW nor the NAS and if you need support or help you contact your regional rep or the NAS direct https://www.nsalg.org.uk/

You will have noticed over the last few months there has been no newsletters or meetings and this is not something we have taken lightly and clearly the NAS doesn’t have an interest in the North West as they have even contact you as members despite assurances in June they would.

We are extremely sorry that the outcome has come this way but we feel we are unable to continue to work with the National allotment Society as an organisation as we don't consider it the best for the membership going forward.

Please note that both our web site and email address are now closed and there will be no further correspondence from either the email or website address.

We thank you for your commitment, value support and dedication over the years  & We wish you well in whatever you decide going forward

Happy Gardening 

NWCAA – Regional Rep’s Response to an email from abas

Hello Dave,

There has been a disagreement between some members of the NWCAA management committee and the NSALG Management Committee over the funding of the Southport Show display.

The "Blackpool Group" wanted more money than was allowed under the present rules- they wanted the money up front- the National Management team suggested that there was enough funds in the NWest to cover the display and any excess would be paid for by National on receiving accounts and receipts.

 Andy Percival did not like this and resigned, as did Derek Cooper the treasurer.

 Alan Hull who has not been well also resigned over this and other reasons.

 The Southport Show Display could have gone ahead under the new financial arrangement, in my opinion, it may have been smaller but Andy Percival cancelled it.

 That, I think is the matter, in a nutshell. A more correct financial breakdown can be got from Dave Morris, who was National treasurer at the time.

 Meanwhile, an e-mail from "Blackpool" has been sent out to all sites (?), stating what it says.

 I am calling a meeting at Crumsall Model Allotments on 21st Oct to discuss this and other things. I have not resigned and I am continuing to follow up case work across the area.

 I attach a letter and invitation for your members to come to Crumpsall and express their views.

  Please circulate the letter to all your members and they can decide what they are going to do.

NWCAA – Action Meeting

FROM REGIONAL REP
You may have received an e-mail from Blackpool stating that the officers of the NWCAA had resigned.
This is only partially correct. The NWCAA rep has not resigned and I am still in post,
Any questions you have may still be sent to me, and I will answer them.
A meeting has been called for Sunday October 21st beginning at 1 p.m.
Crumpsall and Cheetham Model Allotments,
Hazelbottom Rd,
Cheetham,
Manchester,
M8   0GQ
Please confirm with me on nw.nsalg@yahoo.co.uk for numbers attending.

Agenda:

Apologies-
Committee Reports-
NW reps report-
Constitutional Issues-
Election of new committee:- chair, secretary, treasurer, website manager.
Next meeting.

NWCAA – abas comments

1. Based on our (Bolton's) experience the resignation of the "Blackpool Group" – will have little effect – though the previous resignation of the Regional Secretary (Andrea) was a major blow to communications generally. (What were the circumstances of Andrea’s resignation and what happened to the contacts network she had created? – question for Oct 21st?))

 2. Interventions by the past Regional Mentor (Alan Hull) have generally produced negative reactions from Bolton site secretaries etc.

 3. The National does not seem to have taken the situation arising in the North-West seriously or acted with any urgency – we question whether they have a functioning database of member contacts

4. We reserve judgement on the role of the Regional Rep - would we (Bolton) have learned about this "Crumpsall" meeting if the Secretary hadn't emailed him – but then maybe he too has received no mailing list from either National or Blackpool?

NWCAA – looking ahead

What kind of NWCAA will emerge from the Crumpsall Meeting ?
Who will be on the Committee etc.?
How are communications / relations between the NAS, the Regional Level and NW societies and federations to be (re?) established and put on a constructive basis?
 What support will the National be giving (financial and otherwise) to the "new" NWCAA? (What is the current financial position of the NWCAA – question to D Morris “then” National Treasurer?)
 Can we assume John Irwin continues as Regional Rep? Is the Regional Rep the NSALG’s representative to us (NW societies) or our Representative to the NSALG?
Who will be the new Regional Mentor?

Once we have some answers to the above, we can debate whether in the long term we (as societies and as individuals) see an advantage in remaining members of / being affiliated to a) the NWCAA and b) the NSALG / NAS?

GM SPATIAL PLAN

No new developments
The revised plan (due June 2018) has now been delayed (due to a need to revise the area population projections).  It will now appear in October and will be followed by 12 weeks consultation
We are in contact with the Salford Federation about Salford City’s reported attitude to including allotment provision in planning / development consents.

APSE REPORT – KEY POINTS

The Association for Public Sector Excellence conducts an annual survey of the Allotment Service across 140 local authorities. A copy of their recent report has been supplied to us. If members wish to have a copy of the full report please email the Secretary and we’ll send you one

Highlights

COSTS – there is a wide variation in costs, but typically an allotment now costs in excess of £70.00 per annum

SIZE – The most common size of a plot is now 200-249 sq metres, this is a fall from the 2017 figure of 249-299 sq metres

WAITING LISTS – 75% of Councils have waiting lists of 100-400, 8% have waiting lists of >1,000. Bolton’s waiting list is 623

TIME TO TAKE ACTION ON MAL-CULTVATION – 39% take 1 month, 44% take 3 months, 11% take 6 months, 5% take 9 months and 1% take a year or more (Question – what is action? What is measured?)

BUDGETS – some debate about the meaning of these figures BUT

Councils report spending under 4 headings, average spending being

Operations - £29,760 (we believe this is the figure BMBC quote to us)

Development - £28,364 (Do BMBC spend anything on “Development” and if so how much and on what?)
Staff - £35,440 (BMBC do not supply us with any data relating to staff costs)
Other - £6.127 (BMBC do not supply any data on this heading)

What budgets cover:-

89 % Perimeter Fencing Walls
87% Paths/Roads
87% Water Bills
28% Promotion Social/Schools
28% Provision Huts/Maintenance
27% Electricity Bills

Facilities Provided

 93% Fencing
86% Mains water
61% Composting
42% Lock Up store/Shed
36% Community Rooms
30% Washing Facilities
29% Toilets
28% Special Needs
29% Live Stock

59% of Ground Maintenance was carried out by Operations Contracts

Allotment Provision

36% of Councils reported their intention to increase the number of allotments available (Bolton would appear to fall into the 66% who have no such intention). We understand that Bolton would only consider a new allotment scheme if it came with a long-term management plan which ensured no call on Council Funding or Resources.

Of these

78.38% intend to examine direct provision by the Council
70.27% intend to examine provision by developers/builders as part of housing / planning policy
32.47% intend to examine provision through Community Groups supported by the Council
13.51% intend to examine provision through other Council Departments
5.41% intend to examine other methods

Management of Sites

28% were managed by a Council officer [4% down on 2017]
7% stated that Allotment Sites were managed by Committees (Self-Managed)
65% of Respondents Stated that they have a mix of Council/Site Committee/Associations Managing Allotments which was an increase of 5% on 2017 and 9% increase from 2016

On Local Authority Allotment Strategies
 49% stated they had one
51 % stated that they did not have one (we believe that Bolton are one of the 51%)
37% stated that they were planning to develop one
60% stated that they recognised the Well Being and Value of Allotments
56% of Local Authorities have Friends/Forum Groups
66% include allotments in their Local Plans

APSE Concluded that

The increasing demand for building land and the lack of plots for new allotment holders is causing concern amongst allotment holders as is the reductions in council budgets which is having an impact on the ability to maintain such sites.

In light of these pressures, many allotment sites are now moving to self-management models, often with the continuing support of the local authority.

In this way allotment holders can not only ensure what finance is available is used to meet the known needs of the site, but they are also able to apply for funding which is not available to local authorities.

This allowance by local authorities for allotment holders to manage their own sites should not be seen as them negating their responsibilities.

Abas comment: There is a danger with ill-considered self-management initiatives that allotment provision may therefore become totally dependent on grant-funding and / or higher rents.

THE AGM

In preparation for both the AGM and the continuing operation of Abas in the future we are inviting you to think about nominations for two groups

The ABAS Executive Committee – The Officers (Chair, Secretary and Treasurer) plus 3-4 other Committee members

The “Shadow Committee” – membership of the Shadow Committee has two functions a) a familiarisation role with the implied intention that members will move into the Officers’ roles in the future and b) long term thinking and planning about Abas, allotments and relations with Bolton MBC

INSURANCE

Contact details for JLF (who have taken over the Bluefin Allotment Insurance Scheme) have now been posted on the abas blogsite at http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk

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

October 14th Local Produce Market at Harpers Lane Allotments

OUTSTANDING ISSUES

So far as we know the principal outstanding issues from the previous meeting have been covered in previous sections. Please make sure we are informed as to issues that you feel need raising and resolving

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

It was reported that the Council had suggested that all new tenants be supplied with a starter pack which sets down the site rules, mal-cultivation processes, structure approvals etc. There is a question as to who should produce this pack and who will pay for it?
The Head of Neighbourhood Services has responded - Unfortunately I think this is a mix-up. The new OMA pack includes the information about structures and poultry and, as previously, refers to those being part of the new tenant’s pack, something we send to new tenants on non OMA sites. There is no suggestion that OMA sites should be providing a ‘pack’.

It was reported that the Council has issued revised guidelines on structures approvals and that tenants are now to be permitted to erect a boundary (presumably with a gate) around their plot provided such a fence is less than 4 feet in height. Members felt that there was a previous prohibition on plot boundary fences and the secretary was asked to check whether the change was “official”.

The Head of Neighbourhood Services has responded - Fencing has always been described as a structure and tenants were required to seek permission in the old days. We’ve now included it in the description as we have had a few enquiries.

It was reported that the Council has stated that the access path running on the LH side of a plot (when standing on the site road / path looking up the plot) is for the sole use that plot-holder. Further that the plot-holder has no right to use the RH path which is the LH path of his / her neighbour. It was felt that this is a contravention of the established convention that access paths are for shared use. (Although some sites have defined LH / RH rules for path maintenance responsibilities.) Secretary to check Council statement.

The Head of Neighbourhood Services has responded – Interested to hear the views on the access paths and I agree that is what you would expect in most cases, where tenants can get on amicably. However, the plot boundary either has to be up the middle of the path or within one plot or another. In the case of the situation at ******* the arrangement wasn’t working and the changes made by a previous tenant haven’t helped. We had to take a view on that case so we did.

There was a discussion of on-site conflict and bullying. The case of one site secretary who had had their greenhouse trashed following a disagreement with a tenant was raised. In this case communications errors by Council staff were felt to have been a major cause of the incident. The Secretary will contact the Head of Neighbourhood Services to raise the creation and enforcement of anti-bullying policies.

The Head of Neighbourhood Services has responded – I don’t think I was aware of the problem at ********. But ***** has requested a meeting on the back of the new OMA). I think the existing rules could be used but it might be worth us working up a joint statement on the interpretation and a process for reporting. Happy to hear Abas thoughts on that.

The question of Bonfires was raised. Whether or not to hold a November Bonfire is a question for individual allotment societies dependent on their local circumstances, insurance provision and the layout of their site. Following the meeting the information below has been provided by Shepherd’s Cross Street Allotments Society who have successfully held a Bonfire in recent years.

A couple of people approached me after the meeting last night to ask who we used to insure our bonfire event last year.  We used the following: https://www.events-insurance.co.uk/

The premium was £60 for £1,000,000 cover, I can’t speak to how they are as an insurer as we haven’t had cause to claim.

 We usually submit a risk assessment to the council sometime around August and they typically get back to us with an answer within a fortnight.  The key points we address are:

• Attendance count (we say 50-60)
• Fire site radius (we say 3m)
• Fire radius (we say 1.2 starting, 2.1 finishing)
• Fuel (we say clean wood and cardboard stored at a distance from the fire site)
• Fire control methods (extinguishers, water etc)
• First aid facilities
• Emergency vehicle access
• Marshall head count

The recent spate of shed break-ins that has affected Rawlyn Rd., Harpers Lane and Shepherds Cross St. was raised. The Secretary undertook to contact the Bolton News to try to raise recognition of the problems allotment sites have with such incidents. An email was sent to the News Desk on 11/09/2018 and an article appeared on 14/9/2018.

It was suggested that there might be a confidentiality problem for some sites in sharing their monthly reports with abas. The Secretary has been asked to design and circulate a form which can be used as an alternative through which Societies can inform Abas as to how many BoT2, BoT3 requests are made each month and the result.

MEETINGS SCHEDULE

The following meetings are planned

Monday 8th October

Monday 12th November (THE AGM)

The minutes of all Abas 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

http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk

BOLTON NEWS 14.09.2018

Following the abas meeting on 10/09/2018 the following piece appeared in the Bolton News

NATIONAL VEGETABLE SOCIETY EVENTS

National Vegetable Society - Lancashire DA

2018 /19 Programme of Talks

The DA has been established 15 years with many long standing Members.  There’s a wealth of knowledge and information amongst Members, who are only too happy to share this.  Members grow for the table, for fun, exhibition or competition.  Non-Members are very welcome to join us

The DA have an excellent line up of speakers for our next programme of talks:  

11 October 2018 – Medwyn Williams MBE, AHRHS, FNVS – NVS National President

Medwyn has put together a new talk for us.  Not to be missed

8 November 2018 – Tony Bracegirdle – All About Roses

Tony’s one of the Country’s top growers and what he doesn’t know isn’t worth knowing

13 December 2018 – AGM + Paul Henshaw – Round up of The Shows

AGM with potato pie supper. Paul gives a presentation of the years local shows

10 January 2019 – Clive Pearson – Organics for the Modern Grower

Clive works with XL Horticulture.  He’ll bring along some “magic potions” for sale on the night

14 February 2019 – Adrian Read – Onions for Exhibition

Adrian gives a very interesting account of his life in horticulture and growing the veg many of us love to grow

14 March 2019 – John Bebbington – Month by Month Growing on the allotment

John grows all his vegetables on his allotment in Crewe. He’s a National Championship winner and fully qualified Judge

11 April 2019 – John Smiles – My Year in Veg

By popular demand we’ve been able to book John.  An informative and amusing night is guaranteed

          

All talks commence at 7.30pm, Ribchester Sports & Social Club, Church St, Ribchester, PR3 3YE.

Entry FREE but a donation is welcome.  There is a raffle, so please bring a prize if you can or support the raffle.  All proceeds to DA running costs

Don’t forget the DA has a Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/NVSLancs/

If you have any queries please contact either David Metcalfe, DA Chair 01282 614429 or Michael Osborn, DA Treasurer, 01282 863351.  DA Secretary, Cath Holmes – cathholmes@hotmail.co.uk or 07748771841.  We look forward to seeing you at the talks.

Registered Charity No. 1088979

Abas is a member of the NVS - abas members may attend these events

AUGUST MINUTES

MINUTES OF THE AUGUST 2018 MEETING OF ABAS

Held 13/08/2018 at Astley Bridge Cricket Club

Present: 19 representatives of 12 societies

Apologies: Steve Barlow (Moss Lea), Carol Barlow (Sapling Rd.), Albert Skelhorn (Clammerclough)

MINUTES OF THE JULY MEETING 

The Minutes having been posted on the Association Blog-site http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk and there being no objections the minutes of the July meeting were formally adopted.

MATTERS ARISING 

A Progress meeting had been held with the Head of Neighbourhood Services on 17th July at which (amongst other matters) those matters flagged at the July meeting were addressed

Allotments Budget

The budget remains the same as in previous years i.e. £30k - £31k

The principal budgetary worry is the much increased use of water over the hot dry summer period which is leading to significant increases in water charges on the Council. Since water charges are a significant element in the budget this is a concern.

The number of vacant plots is not expected to materially affect the value of rents received.

The number of offers of rent-free periods (usually up to Oct 2018) to new tenants will increase to encourage applicants to take on difficult and hard-to-rent plots.

Maintenance work

The Council is stockpiling “road planings” and hopes (finances allowing) to be able to do some remedial work on site roads and car parking areas on allotment sites in the Autumn / Winter.

Societies are encouraged to send in their “wish lists” to Abas who will compile them and send them on to the Allotments section.

One member asked whether these “planings” might be made available to societies under the “self-help” scheme. Allotments have since confirmed that they will examine requests for planings on a site by site basis. They have again stressed that the programme of work referred to above depends largely on the size of water bills received by the autumn.

Roll-out of revised OMAs

MR has visited Harpers Lane and Green Lane (Horwich). Green Lane are moving to an OMA. A visit was offered to Dealey Rd. but they are happy to do without. Allotments hopes to send emails soon to restart the visits process. The Secretary was asked to enquire as to the progress of the implementation of the Revised OMA

Provision of an updated “Refresher Monitor”

Abas has been supplied with the current refresher monitor which gives current details on waiting lists etc. New monitor sheets are now only being produced every 6 months

Waiting Lists

Under GDPR there is a potential issue relating to the release of contact data on applicants to site secretaries for the re-letting of plots. There may be a need for site societies to sign a document stating that they will use this data only for the purpose stated and will not transmit the data onwards. Allotments is waiting advice from IT / Legal. In the meantime normal service continues.

Hatfield Road –

The issue about the Portaloo has been resolved –– but a visit by Jeff and Terry suggested a large number of abandoned plots.

Hatfield Rd. is a non-OMA site. Allotments again stated that the Council has no resources to inspect non-OMA sites or enforce mal-cultivation notices on them etc. The only way plots become “vacant” is therefore if the rent isn’t paid. Letting vacant plots depends on time and resources being available within allotments at the time. Non-OMA sites will only get worse and there is thus a danger that at some date in the future they will become unfit for use and then…..

Allotments has invited Jeff to submit a report on Hatfield Rd detailing which plots are involved and the Council will consider issuing BoT2s to the tenants of those plots. Jeff has subsequently done this. Does the Membership wish to see abas do this for other non-OMA Sites?

Doubts were raised – Once BoT2s are issued who will do the follow-up inspection? If there is a move to BoT3s and subsequent eviction who will be responsible for the re-letting of the vacated plots? Are we merely creating a situation of a site with a large number of vacant plots, some of which might then be classified as “unlettable”? Are we assisting in creating an opportunity for the Council to close the site? This issue needs thinking through.

Secretary Matters

All present recognised the difficult position of Society Secretaries caught as they often are between the Council and their individual plot-holders.

Allotments is establishing a standard procedure that when issuing BoT2s and BoT3s, staff send an email to the Site Secretary concerned at the same time as placing the notice into an envelope for posting.

There is a concern that when one secretary retires and is replaced by a new one (often coinciding with major changes in Committee membership) a lot of knowledge and information gets lost in the handover.

The Abas Committee therefore agreed to create a “Secretaries’ Check List” which will itemise what should be included in a handover pack to be given by the retiring secretary to the incoming secretary. This pack might be extended to include Treasurers and other Committee members.

Work on such a pack has not yet started (the Committee has been too involved in the Allotments Competition, the Show etc. and simply running their own plots at this time of year).

We would hope to carry out work on the pack at the end of the season.

Re-letting Matters

Allotments supports a “3 strikes and you’re out” approach to contacting people from the waiting list. If a secretary has sent either 3 emails or left 3 messages on an answerphone (or any combination of these) without response then s/he should not persist. S/he should however list that person on the monthly report and the Council will move their name down the waiting list.

If applicants say “they are not ready for a plot yet” – then abas has proposed that IF a society can get a statement (in writing) from such people as to a date at which they might be ready to accept a plot – it might be acceptable NOT to contact such people with offers before that date? The secretary should list that person on the monthly report stating that no offer has been made and stating why.

The Council is hoping that it can amend its system so that “buddies” will be clearly indicated on the waiting list. Abas has proposed that it should be up to the Society (with its local knowledge) to decide whether buddies need to be contacted with offers? Again when an offer is not made the reason should be stated on the monthly report.

The rationale for putting “reasons” (in all these cases) on the Monthly Report is so that Allotments don’t spend time contacting Secretaries to enquire “why has number five on the list been offered a plot, when there are four above her?”

AN INCREASING CONCERN

Discussions with some site secretaries has uncovered a concern relating to the application of OMAs.

We think it may be worthwhile to set out again our (abas) current understanding:-

Preamble

An OMA is a working agreement between the Council and a Site Society under which the Society acts as the agent for the Council in relation to a number of defined functions. The Society can (and should) carry out these functions regardless of whether a plot-holder is a member of the society or not. In all cases where a tenant does not accept the decision of the society they have a right to appeal to the Council.

The functions are (in the main):

Granting permission to erect structures (greenhouses, sheds etc.) – guidelines are provided by the council as to what is acceptable

Granting permission to keep poultry (and rabbits and pigeons – bees are in dispute) - guidelines are provided by the council as to what is acceptable

Inspecting the site on a routine basis and submitting Monthly condition reports to the Council

3.1 Inspections should be conducted by a designated team of Society members and not by a single person. Inspections can / should lead to initiating the BoT (Breach of Tenancy) processes (specifically mal-cultivation)

BoTs have three stages

3.2 Stage 1 – informal – the Society contacts the tenant and tries to resolve the issue without the formal involvement of the Council – photographic evidence of the plot condition may be taken. Where a tenant is NOT a society member (and thus the Society may have no contact details for him / her) this stage may be deemed inappropriate. Stage 2 may also be skipped in the case of “repeat offenders”.  (Current advice received from Allotments (15/08/2018) would seem to be that whilst it is not necessary for a Society to actually go through a BoT1 stage, the Society should (in the month prior to requesting a BoT2) noted on the Monthly report that the plot is giving cause for concern. It might be worth reminding Allotments that you’ve done this when requesting the BoT2.)

3.3 Stage 2 – BoT2 – the Society informs the Council (through the monthly report) that a particular plot is not being cultivated to an acceptable standard. They then request that the Council serves a Formal Improvement Notice (usually referred to as a BoT2). Such a Request must be accompanied by a dated photograph / photographs showing the state of the plot on the inspection date.  If the Council agrees then they will serve the BoT2 on the tenant which gives them 21 days (the improvement period) to remedy the problem. The Council will inform the Society as to the date at which the BoT2 was served, and thus the date the improvement period ends.

At a date subsequent to the completion of the improvement period, the Society will re-inspect the plot and determine if the plot is now in an acceptable condition. They will (supported by photographic evidence) then inform the Council of this decision through the Monthly Report. If the plot is deemed “acceptable” then no further action is required.

3.3 Stage 3 - If the plot is deemed not “acceptable” then the Society will request the Council to terminate the tenancy by issuing a Notice of Re-entry (usually referred to as a BoT3). If the Council agrees it will then serve a BoT3 on the tenant. This begins a process by which the tenant is removed from the plot. The Council will inform the Society as to a) the date when the BoT3 is served, b) the date when the legal processed of retaking possession have been completed and c) the date from which the plot may be re-let.

4.   The Letting of Plots

4.1 Site Secretaries are provided with periodic updates to the Waiting List for their site.

Please Note:

A Site Secretary cannot (unless expressly authorised by the Council) offer a plot to any person who is not on the waiting list.

All other things being equal plots should be offered in the order the names appear on the Waiting List.

If after three attempts (email or leaving a ‘phone message) the Society cannot make contact with the applicant then they should inform the Council via the monthly report that it proved impossible to contact this person. (See earlier notes) They should then move to the next name on the list.

4.2 When they are informed that a plot is available for re-letting they should contact the person at the top of the waiting list and ask if they still want a plot. (There are some exceptions which relate to a) considering transfers for existing site tenants and b) when the person at the head of the list is a “buddy” on the site or has previously indicated they do not yet want a plot – see abas minutes).

4.3 If the person does want a plot, a society representative should meet with them on site, show them the plot and ask if they want it.

If they refuse the offer then the Society should inform the Council of the refusal and the reason given – the Council may then take action either to a) remove them from the waiting list, b) amend the date they came on the list to the date of the refusal (thus putting them at the bottom of the list) or c) take no action.

4.4 If the person accepts the plot then it is usual for the Society to offer them the plot for a probationary period (usually three months). No rent is payable during a probationary period. (See also earlier minute about rent-free periods.) The Society will inspect the plot during and at the end of the probationary period. In certain circumstances the probationary period may be waived.

If at the end of the probationary period the Society feels that the probationer has not made sufficient progress then they can advise the Council of this fact (with suitable photographic evidence) and request that the probationer leave the plot and that they be allowed to re-let it. Strictly speaking a probationer is not a tenant (see below) and has no tenancy rights. (However this has on occasion been a contentious issue, with “failed” probationers appealing to the Council and to elected members, hence the importance of dated photographic evidence).

4.5 When a prospective tenant has successfully demonstrated their ability to cultivate a plot, then the Society should get the applicant to sign a Tenancy Registration Form. The Society should then send a copy of this form with the Monthly Report to the Council requesting that a Tenancy be offered. The Council then sends the prospective tenant a Tenancy Agreement (and informs the Society that of the date that this document was sent).

4.6 It is then the Tenant’s responsibility to return the Tenancy Agreement to the Council. Until such time as this is done no tenancy exists and the applicant has no rights to cultivate the land. 

4.7 Once the Tenancy Agreement is received by the Council they will a) inform the Society and b) arrange the billing of the tenant

5. General Administration

An important document is the tenancy amendment form – this lets a secretary record and communicate to the Council when a tenant signifies they’re giving up or when something else on their tenancy changes. It’s important that Societies have actual written evidence that a tenant has for example quit their plot. Societies should keep copies of any emails or letters they receive that relate to such matters.

Dealing with Members

Membership of a Society represents another (separate) agreement between a Society and an individual who chooses to join it. The Society therefore has a “duty” to provide agreed services to those members (and only to those members).

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, although total numbers of plots on sites in membership exceeds this figure.

The Treasurer will now start membership for 2018/2019.

BOLTON ALLOTMENTS COMPETITION 2018

The final round of Judging took place W/C 16th July. Some 27 entries  were received from 9 sites  and the results are as follows

New Tenants Trophy

1st Martyn Swain Rawlyn Road

2nd Lee Smith Dealey Road

3rd Denise Sweeney Sapling Road

The Fairhurst Trophy [ Best Full Size Plot]

1st J Dyson Sapling Road

2nd D& D Urmston Sapling Road

3rd A Saunders   Sapling Road

The Fred Greenhalgh Trophy [ Best Smaller Plot]

1st Mike and Mary Marsh Nasmyth Street

2nd Pauline Oliver Moss Lea

3rd Phil Woods Sapling Road

Rose Bowl Competition [For Best Allotment site in Bolton]

1st Tonge Fold Allotments

2nd Moss Lea

3rd Sapling Road

Special thanks to J MAHER of Bolton for supplying the Prize Vouchers and to Abas Volunteers for Judging the Competition

ABAS ONION, LEEK AND VEGETABLE SHOW

The Show took place this year on Saturday 4 Aug at Trinity Methodist Church.

The Show consisted of 25 Vegetable Class with some 180  entries tabled on the Day,

The Show Judge Mr Mike Osbourne FNV remarking on the excellent quality of Vegetables Shown

Cups/Awards

 Association of Bolton Allotment Societies Shield for a Collection of 4 Vegetables  

1st Mr Brian Milne

The Secretaries’ Shield for Most Points in Show

1st Mr Jeff Gibson

The Stan Pickles Trophy and Silver Medal for most Meritorious Vegetable in Show

Mr Jeff Gibson

The Bolton Allotments Council Challenge Trophy for the allotment site with Most Points

 Won by Sapling Road Allotments

 

Thanks to the following for sponsoring the Show

The Duchy of Lancaster

Mr George Wild

Mr Richard Hayes

Mrs Sue Clegg

Mr Les Butterworth

Mrs Margaret Farrell

Mr Terry Farrell

Mr Jeff Gibson

And a special thanks to Terry and Margaret Farrell and the Show Committee for organising and running the show.

Although the number of entries (180) was high, 179 of these came from two sites (Sapling Rd. and Tonge Fold) with just 1 from Moss Lea. The Chair commented that few if any representatives of other sites (other than people collecting awards from the Allotment Competitions) had attended the show as visitors. The Committee hope to initiate a discussion as to a) should we continue to hold the Show, b) How do we better get information about the show and how to enter down to the ‘grassroots’ plot-holders c) How do we encourage those plot-holders to enter produce in the Show? e) How do we better publicise the Show? 

NWCAA

Following advice from a member, and subsequent to the meeting the Secretary tried to access the NWCAA website to find it had reverted to a generic BT website builder page. A further attempt to contact NWCAA produced the following response:-

To:boltonallotments2014@yahoo.co.uk

14 Aug at 10:12

Please Note as from Monday 4th June 2018

Your (that is the NWCAA’s) current officers have resigned and are no longer part of the National Society or North West Region

This email account is no longer monitored and therefore if you need support or information please contact the NW Rep on email nw.nsalg@yahoo.co.uk

Alternatively please contact the National Allotment Society Direct on natsoc@nsalg.org.uk

Thank you for your support and we wish you well in the future

********************

We’ll try to find out more through the Regional Rep and / or the NAS HQ

GM SPATIAL PLAN

The revised plan (due June 2018) has now been delayed (due to a need to revise the area population projections).  It will now appear in October and will be followed by 12 weeks consultation

Noted – but not yet confirmed

We have been informed (informally) that Salford City Council appear to have acceded to their Federation’s request that space for allotments be considered when granting planning permissions for new developments. It appears that such space is included in a current permission but the land that the developers have offered lies within Bolton rather than Salford.

Bolton planners are against the idea and would also seek to reject any abas approaches for a similar provision on planning applications in Bolton. A sticking point seems to be who would have responsibility for the management of any sites thus created.

HOSEPIPE BAN

As members will know the proposed Hosepipe Ban has been called off.

We would remind members of the continuing need to save water. Water usage has been very high so far this year and this will be reflected in the bills submitted to the Council.  Higher water bills will mean that there is less money available for site work by the Council e.g. on site roads and car parks

INSURANCE

Contact details for JLF (who have taken over the Bluefin Allotment Insurance Scheme) have now been posted on the abas blogsite at http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk The Secretary has further details of the JLF offer for those who wish to have them.

We would again repeat that this information has been acquired at the request of member societies and that abas does not endorse any particular supplier.

WHAT’S ON IN 2018?

August 18th Open Day / Show at Moss Lea Allotments

August 25^th Produce Market at Florence Avenue

September 8th Open Day at Settle Street Allotments

September 8th Horwich Annual Home & Produce Show

(Horwich Community Centre – contact horwich.gov.uk)

September 9th Local Produce Market at Harpers Lane Allotments 11.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m.

October 14th Local Produce Market at Harpers Lane Allotments 11.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

REQUEST TO KEEP BEES.

A member site wishes (following some incidents with a previous beekeeper in which plot-holders were stung) to impose a blanket ban on beekeeping on the site.

They have now been approached by a person (not a plot-holder /tenant, not on the waiting list) who has stated a desire / intention to establish bee hives on a former plot which the Council, has declared "unlettable". Abas assumes that this person has some connection with a plot-holder on the site who has advised them that this space exists.

At the meeting The Secretary gave Abas’ opinion (subsequently supported by Allotments 15/08/2018) as:

"All plot-holders are TENANTS of Bolton Council - Council Policy allows any tenant to apply to keep bees (either on their allotment or in certain cases on another part of the allotment site where such provision is available). Therefore a Society may not (unilaterally) pass a blanket ban on bee-keeping on their site - this contravenes the plot-holder's tenant's rights.

Our current understanding (following a recent case at another site) is that applications to keep bees should be referred to the Council.

Addressing the second part of our member’s query, the right to keep bees is a right flowing from holding a tenancy on a plot. Therefore to apply to keep bees. an individual must be a tenant with a plot on the site in question. This means they will have applied for a plot, been on the waiting list and then been granted a plot.

We have been advised by Allotment (15/08/2018) that  were a non-plotholder / non-tenant were to approach them with a proposal to establish hives on a piece of unused ("unlettable") land within the boundaries of an allotment site, the Council would not approve the application unless it had the support of the Site Society.  

The member also asked "How do we check that the beekeeper has adequate insurance and has attended a suitable course?" since these are part of Council guidelines. We advised that if the beekeeper has insurance though say the MBKA then they will have had to have attended a suitable (in the eyes of the MBKA) course in order to be MBKA members and obtain MBKA insurance. However if the Council is handling the application the Council is responsible for making these checks (and for ensuring any other conditions they impose on the applicant are met) and should do this.

Please note abas still support the BBKA / NAS stance that (wherever possible)  bee hives should not be on individual plots within the main growing areas and should be situated in suitable areas away from other tenants.

MEETINGS SCHEDULE

The following meetings are planned

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

http://abas2014.blogspot.co.uk