Local Issues
37. Allotment demand varies from one area of the
country to another and this is reflected in figures for waiting
lists and vacant, untended plots from the English Allotments Survey.
For instance, in Essex, 28 per cent of plots are currently vacant
whereas in Tyne and Wear, the equivalent figure is just 3 per
cent and there are more than 1000 people on waiting lists.[65]
We are persuaded that allotment demand is a function of many complex,
inter-related factors which include the local authority's level
of promotion of allotments along with the location, maintenance
and quality of existing sites. We believe that simple measures
such as vacancies and waiting lists often fail to represent these
factors and do not provide an accurate gauge of allotment demand.
Professor Crouch wrote of his worries of misinterpretation of
these statistics, describing them as being open to "'instant
reading'".[66]
38. Within most communities, we believe that there
exists a latent demand for allotments. Some parts of the country
(for example, North-eastern England) have a strong tradition of
allotment cultivation and the overall demand in these areas is
always likely to be higher than those areas without that tradition.
However, in all areas, local factors tend to dictate whether this
underlying desire is converted into a sustained demand for plots.
In this regard, the policies and actions of the allotment providers
are critical. We received a good deal of evidence on both good
and bad practice in this regard. As one might expect, sites with
a secure future which are well run, maintained to a high standard,
free of vandalism, well publicised and with facilities such as
toilets, water and seed shops tend to be fully occupied.[67]
Similarly, poorly equipped, managed and maintained sites with
an uncertain future and problems of vandalism tend to suffer from
higher rates of vacancies[68]
which ultimately result in an "abandonment and dereliction
cycle".[69] In the
box below, we reproduce evidence of some of the problems experienced
by plot-holders.
39. We were encouraged to hear of some authorities
which had adopted a positive approach to allotments provision.
We were particularly heartened by the evidence from Stroud Town
Council[70] which explicitly
recognised the link between a positive allotments policy and the
resulting time and effort which individual allotment holders will
be willing to invest.
40. However many submissions showed a less positive
side of local policy. From the evidence we received, it is
apparent that the performance of local authorities with regard
to allotment provision is best described as patchy. Some authorities
pursue an active approach to maintaining vibrant and fully-occupied
allotment sites whilst others appear at best lethargic and at
worst to be instrumental in encouraging the decline of interest
in allotments.[71]
Without a positive local approach, it seems likely that much of
the demand for allotments will always remain latent. Later
in this Report, we draw upon the evidence we received to outline
the need and potential for a Best Practice programme for allotments.
