ALLOTMENTS IN ENGLAND report 06

ALLOTMENTS IN ENGLAND REPORT OF SURVEY 2006 Prepared for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister by Professor David Crouch The University of Derby IMPORTANT NOTE: We estimate that questionnaires were received on less than half of allotment sites in England which casts doubt on whether the findings presented in the report relating to sites are valid The low response means that it is not possible to use this survey to estimate with confidence the numbers of allotment sites in England; and that the other findings relating to sites should be viewed with caution as they may not be representative of all allotment sites Department for Communities and Local Government CONTENTS Chapter 1: Executive Summary pages 2- Chapter : Introduction and context Chapter : Research Methods Chapters 4-7 Allotments Chapter 4: Supply Sites and plots Plot availability Site status, ownership Regional distribution Comparison of supply and trends 1996-2005 Chapter 5: Demand Waiting lists Chapter 6: Site characteristics Chapter 7: Policy Chapter 8: Management practice Chapters 9-10 City Farms and Community Gardens Chapter 9: supply Chapter 10: site characteristics: policy: management practice Chapter 11: Discussion Chapter 12: Conclusions and recommendations Tables and figuresusedinthetext 1.Comparison and trends, allotments, 1996-2005 2.Distribution of questionnaire return rate Allotments supply: regional distribution 3.Allotmnet ownership and status distribution 4.Legal status of allotments 5.Allotment status by plots by regions 6.Summary of key components, allotments 7.Key trends analysis, allotments 8.Local councils that have disposed of allotment sites 9.allotment rent by council type 10.Average allotment rents across different status categories and by region 11.Council audit of open spaces 12.Number of allotment sites in relation to allotment policy document 13.Overall and rent management responsibility 14.Management of allotment sites by region 15.Authorities` responsibility for handling rents 16.Maintenance and organisation of waiting list 17.authorities responsible for site perimeter 18.Authorities responsible for water supply 19.ciuncils offering incentives for disability by type 20.incentives to plotholders 21.types of antisocial behaviour 22.provision of facilities to encourage environmental friendliness 23.Ownership of land for city farms and community gardens 24.City farms and community gardens: number of garden plots, total areas 25.General facilities available on city farms and community garden sites and by region 26.Facilities for individuals with disabilities, city farms and community gardens 27.Activiites and events taking place on city farm and community garden sites 28.Anti-social behaviour on community garden sites 29.Activities and events taking place on city farms and community gardens by region Appendices 1.Research methods and questionnaires Questionnaire design Questionnaire distribution The questionnaires Commentary on trends comparison Commentary on response levels SurveyQuestionnaires 3.Summary glossary, allotments, city farms and community gardens Appendices tables and figures Convergence factors used in the estimate of allotment areas and rental values Method of distribution of Allotment Policy and Site Questionnaires 3.Key, components of allotments by unitary authorities, London Boroughs and Metropolitan Districts Chapter Executive Summary This Report present the results of the2005survey of allotments, city farms and community gardens in England This Survey and its analysis were undertaken by the University of Derby between 2004and 2005 The Survey included attention to the following:  Supply, and trends in supply [comparing current evidence with a similar previous survey undertaken in 1994-6  Demand  Site characteristics  Policy  Management practice Regarding city farms and community gardens, their:  Supply This is the first time such data has been collected and analysed  Site characteristics; Policy; Management practice This Report presents an analysis of these categories of data, discussion and conclusions From these, recommendations are made for consequent handling of allotment matters, including their future monitoring It presents a discussion on emerging issues concerning city farms and community gardens This Report accompanies two significant data sets, on Allotments, and on City Farms and Community Gardens These datasets, provided by this Survey, accompany a GIS database whose locational data were provided through the Survey Brief context on Allotments, and on City Farms and Community Gardens Allotments An allotment is a rented plot of ground let and used for the purpose of domestic cultivation, principally but not exclusively for growing food During several hundred years allotments have become a significant feature of culture and landscape For over one hundred years local councils have held the responsibility to provide allotments to the public in response to demand for them Some adjustments to legislation have followed during the last one hundred years, but their purpose and the local authorities` duty to provide has remained the same [Crouch and Ward 2003] Allotments have for this time span been a feature distributed unevenly across cities, towns and villages Allotments have a history of wide ownership type, and there remain allotments in private ownership Of course, these sites not fall within government policy and regulations, and evidence of their existence and character tends not to be recorded in the public domain; their ownership and location is very diverse Allotments in the ownership and management of local councils were, until the nineteen nineties, in the remit of the Ministry of Agriculture They then became part of the responsibility of the Department of the Environment, now the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister This change in responsibility reflects their acknowledgement of significance in terms of several policy arenas, as noted below The popularity of allotments has varied over the last on hundred years, peaking significantly during the two world wars, and especially following the second world war, experienced a decline as a result of the association with rationing, and as new development spread often into areas of land including allotments Their popularity was reversed during the nineteen seventies as a result of increasing attention to diet, organic food and wider environmental issues, including interest in self-produced food growing The subsequent three decades have been characterised by shifts in pressure of land development and negotiations for these popular concerns that have frequently prioritised allotments as a key source for their delivery [Crouch and Ward Ibid] Following the 1997 Report on Allotments in England [DETR/Anglia 1997], the Department of the Environment Inquiry into the Future of Allotments identified a number of areas for policy attention where allotments were to be engaged [House of Commons 1998] These included environmental sustainability, open space quality, health, an accessible resource for older people and those with disability and community building A subsequent investigation into the opportunities for best practice for allotments, including policy connectedness and delivery, was made [LGA 2001] Allotment sites, facilities, security, land prices and development pressures, accessible populations, management delivery and local council policy are all very varied Therefore, generally aggregated evidence on allotments does not significantly reveal the dynamics of their operation in significant detail This is evident in the data sest considered in this report, and the commentary possible This Survey provides the first updating of data concerning a wide range of allotments policy and management since the Survey of 1997 City Farms and Community Gardens www.farmgarden.org.uk City farms and community gardens are normally members of a framework registered charity, The Federation of City farms and Community Gardens Each `garden` and `farm` is independent, and normally relates in its business to a local council or private agency The Federation represents 65 city farms, more than 1000 community gardens, 75 school farms and 20 community-led allotment groups in the UK The Federation exists to support, promote and represent groups which are engaged in community-led development of open space through locally managed farming and gardening It serves as the national sub sectoral umbrella body or infrastructure organisation, providing services to member voluntary organisations within a thematic sub sector City Farms City Farms are sites normally located within cities, where a range of activities can take place, related to livestock keeping and cultivation, characterised by a strong public participation through organised visits and public access The public accessibility requires areas of the farms to be set aside for circulation and public events City farms are significantly community-run and generated through community activities, increasingly managed on a very professional basis through the umbrella auspices of the Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens City farms originated during the nineteen seventies and the growing popularity of making non-urban environments and in particular animals accessible to city populations, with a purpose too of engaging those, especially children, living in more crowded areas of cities with little or no experience of farming Community Gardens Community Gardens developed from the city farms `movement` and drew upon models in such as the USA for regenerating areas of effectively vacant land in cities for the purpose of community-oriented and responsive cultivation, including food growing, on individual and on shared plots of various sizes Thus, Community Gardens resemble allotments in that they are available for cultivation They are firmly in a tradition of community involvement, and tend to be used by plotholders from their immediate neighbourhoods, sometimes directly linked with particular adjacent housing schemes They are not held within particular government policies for provision, but are recognised by government as a legitimate supplier of appropriate land for community cultivation During the nineteen eighties community gardens became part of the City Farms federation, and now the appropriate body is called The Federation for Community Gardens and City Farms It is not the requirement of all city farm, or community gardens, to be associated within the Federation, and many remain independent CFCG website The present Survey included all three categories, Allotments, City Farms and Community Gardens, in an effort to deliver comprehensive evidence concerning these three, distinct but related forms of land availability and their contribution to environment and landscape character and quality, utilisation by the general public, service for opportunities of cultivation and their related benefits for health, community building and individual and community responsibility for the environment of urban and rural areas Data on city farms and community gardens had not previously been collected www.farmgarden.org.uk Asummary glossaryoftermsisgiveninAppendix3.: 1.2.Main findings: Allotments, 1.2.1.Allotments:  Evidence was received for only one half of the estimated allotments in England  There are 7,000 Sites and 245,000 Plots  The Total Sites area is 4,785hectares[16,987acres]  5.2 plots are available for every 1,000 population  13.4 plots are available for every 1,000 households  The waiting list for allotments is 14,000  There are 25,131 vacant plots  The average allotment site has 39 plots, range c.10-400  Most allotments sites are owned by local authorities, a small proportion are privately owned  The average rent for theusual10rodplotis£31,varyingbetween £24 in the East of England to £46 in London Comparisons and trends 1996-2005 demonstrate a reduction of plots and sites; reduction of vacant plots, and an increase in waiting list numbers Table Comparisons and trends 1996-2005 Feature Total sites Total plots Total plots vacant Total waiting list 1996 7,796 295,630 43,750 12,950 2006 7,000 245,000 25,131 14,000 1.2.2.Three hundred Statutory Sites have of various sizes and parts there of are recorded as disposed of since 1996 [ODPM records];500 Temporary Sites [not protected by special legislation] are estimated as disposed of since 1996.This evidence suggests a continued disposal of sites, accompanied by an increase in vacant plots; more efficient use of remaining plots, and reduction in overall availability to the population.Vacant plots may be associated with a lack of local public awareness of their availability, that depends on modes and efficiency of site and plot promotion These aggregate observations may belie local correlations between these factors 1.2.3.A significant minority of local councils are engaging allotment in their open space, environmental quality, community opportunity and other related policy areas However, this is very uneven Promotion of sites is also very uneven, and there is a significant surviving use of merely on-site notices that may lack popular visibility 1.2.4.Four in ten of the one half of councils responding have Open Space Strategies It is not known how allotments are engaged in these An Open Space Audit is required by PPG17 1.2.5.Approximately one third of the councils that responded in the survey have some form of facility or instruction to encourage environmentally friendly use of some of their sites 1.2.6.Most allotment sites from responding councils are fenced, and supplied with water The quality of this provision is not recorded 1.2.7.Significant minorities of councils have special facilities for those with disabilities, and encourage those who may be socially excluded A significant minority of councils have events, educational use and other public use of some of their sites 1.2.8.Most allotment sites are managed by local councils, including especially rent handling A significant minority of sites are managed by Allotment Associations 1.2.9.Where they are maintained, waiting lists remain the responsibility of local councils in the main 1.2.10.Most allotment authorities identify some form of vandalism 1.3 Main findings: City Farms and Community Gardens 1.3.1.City Farms  Evidence was received for 36 City Farms, with 113 plots for individual or shared [`community`] cultivation Individual plots are extremely varied in size and number on City Farm sites  These sites total an area of 109 hectares [300 acres]  Sites are managed locally, and significantly offer community involvement, public visits, educational use, and have a range of livestock 1.3.2.Community Gardens  evidencewasreceivedfor301 Community Gardens  These sites include 864 plots for individual or shared cultivation  These sites occupy in total 227 hectares [561 acres];  The average site size 0.9hectares [2.3acres]  Sites are managed locally, with significant member involvement A significant number of sites offer some level of community involvement, and public visits, 1.3.City Farms and Community Gardens 1.3.1.City farms and Community garden sites are generally well supplied with facilities, including those for people with disability 10 11.1.6.Allotment rents vary significantly This is likely to be in relation to the location [thus land price], soil quality, facilities and other management practices in relation to the sites [LGA 2001, Survey 1996] The density of the present evidence does not permit clarity on this, but the data in this survey is not able to correlate rents and site characteristics 11.1.7.Allotment sizes demonstrate some variability from the larger, regular 10 rod plot There may be further scope for diversifying allotments size in order to increase their accessibility to the wider public 11.1.8.Livestock is now kept on a limited number of allotments 11.1.9.Evidence of the character of allotment demand, given the acknowledged great shifts that have been made since the 80s, albeit unevenly, suggest opportunity for further use of allotments to deliver the range of policies and actions identified in the 2001 report 11.1.10.The regional distribution of allotments in terms of site characteristics and quality, management, public access, handling of supply and demand suggests significant variability This survey, however, does not provide the data to examine the dynamics of allotment policy and management in each region 11.1.11.Diversity of allotments, in number, size and availability between regions is historic An investigation would valuably identify regionally distinctive opportunities concerning site characteristics 11.1.12 Anti-social behaviour remains significant on most allotment sites 11.1.13.Evidence on private sites is very sparse, yet the overall evidence suggests that there is a similar number of privately owned sites as a decade ago 52 11.1.14.There is only a partial response from local councils to the production of an audit of allotments sites at time of survey however, most remaining councils indicate an intention to make this audit within six months of the survey, that should at time of writing be completed 11.1.15.A small number of local councils demonstrate one or other means of bringing allotments to connect with the appropriate range of policy areas More work is needed to ensure that further opportunities for allotments are realised 11.1.16.A significant proportion of local councils indicate some form of promotion of their sites and plots, especially when these plots are vacant This is applied very unevenly, and this suggests the opportunity to encourage local councils to ensure greater efficiency of site use through increased promotional activities, and to evaluate the most appropriate promotional means in different localities 11.1.17.There is some evidence of the devolution of allotment management However this tends still to be at a small level, and offers more opportunity to engage plotholders in the management of their site, releasing energies, offering empowerment 11.1.18 Social inclusion and physical inclusion are addressed by relatively small proportion of councils and on their sites 11.1.19.The encouragement of environmentally friendly practice onsite is very uneven 11.1.20.The complexity of the two questionnaires, and the requirement to include locational data, may be reasons for the incompleteness of this response 11.2.CITY FARMS AND COMMUNITY GARDENS 53 11.2.1.The dataset provides new collated evidence for city farms and community gardens These matters will be addressed in particular by the Federation to examine its opportunities for making further success 11.2.2.However, there is evidence from the practice, management, community engagement that are significant on such sites that there is much that may be transferable to allotment policy and management 12.Recommendations 12.1.The level and unevenness in response suggest strongly that a procedure for regular keeping of data by local councils be required It is also valuable to extend this requirement to the local council documentation of evidence on private sites 12.2 All data on allots required with the annual returns of open spaces Allotments are public open spaces, albeit with a distinctive relative individual user temporality Given their broader value and complexity, allotments may need to be collected in more depth… 12.3.Key aspects of data are considered in terms of the stratification of council response In, for example, the evidence on policy development by local councils, there is a significant difference in policy development between district and metropolitan councils Moreover, the response rate in particular sections of the questionnaires, on policy and on sites, whilst uneven in all categories, is significantly different between these categories of councils 12.4.Many sites are owned, and managed, by town and parish councils Others are owned and managed by their respective district councils It may be that considerable numbers, perhaps thousands of sites, are in the former category The 1996 survey was supported by a regional network of informants, at great length and time This was not undertaken for 54 the present survey An full audit is advised on these potential sites, at least in a selective way to assess their present situation, condition, use, and trends 12.5.An analysis of the dynamics and modus op of devolved management and its relative efficiency and effectiveness vis a vis non-devolved management In view of the importance of allotment sites and the facilities they offer, it is important to investigate more closely the connections and dynamics of allotment sites in England 12.6.An examination of correlation between rents and faciltiies, management types is needed to evaluate performance and opportunity 12.7.A selective review of policy and services would reveal correlations between performance and efficiency, with potential for improvement 12.8.As there is evidence that suggests an increasing mismatch between global figures of waiting lists and vacant plots, and that the evidence collected does not permit exact comparison in individual councils or sites, a focused, selective, local analysis is recommended to secure an informed picture of the local dynamics of allotments council performance, supply and demand 12.9.Ingeneral,this survey did not provide for an assessment of connections between evidence in many important cases For example, the consequences of building policy for allotments and the effects of those policies, allotment promotion and types thereof and their deliver of demand, of reducing site vacancy; management arrangements and the delivery of greater site effectiveness, efficiency of use, delivery to those with disability It is therefore recommended that carefully sampled investigations are required to achieve these policy goals 12.10.In view of the importance of popular knowledge concerning the availability of existing allotments, further work is needed to evaluate the performance of promotion 55 12.11.Asrents vary enormously regionally, by status and by category of location [eg city, village], the reasons need to be analysed, and appropriate resposes to achieve efficiency and availability addressed This may include attention to the development of more smaller sites 12.12.Allotments are frequently an aspect of local government that is not highly positioned within the organisation and thus often lacking in investment of more appropriate staff and appropriate time This is likely to be the explanation of the variation in response to particular questions, as well as to the questionnaires a whole It is therefore recommend that action be taken to position the work that local councils appropriately according to their recognition as significant components of joined-up government policy delivery 12.13.Dissemination of this report, opportunity to engage local councils in particular in the building of effectiveness and efficiency, and relevance to a range of policy issues that allotments have Sources used in Report CFCG website: www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/askncvo/index.asp?id=374&fID=71 Crouch D and Ward C [2003] The Allotment: its landscape and culture Five Leaves [first ed Faber and Faber 1988] House of Commons [1998] Report of Enquiry into the Future of Allotments Cmnd: LGA [Local Government Association] [2001] Growing in Community: Best Practice LGA-DETR-GLA-Shell Better Britain Campaign 2001 DETR/Anglia [Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions] [1997] Survey of Allotments in England PPG17PolicyandPlanningGuidanceNote.Thisdocument identifiestherequirementforalllocalcouncilstoproducean AuditofOpenSpacesintirjurisdiction 56 Appendix 1: Research Method Questionnaire design Allotments At the outset, a single questionnaire was designed in order to obtain information about allotment policy and to simultaneously capture specific details pertaining to allotment sites The latter included data on the basic infrastructure of each site (e.g size, number of plots, presence of fencing etc) and information to enable the site to be accurately spatially located by a grid reference However, initial pilot work indicated that allotment officers were likely to be overwhelmed by the work required and difficulties in deriving a grid reference that would potentially be detrimental to obtaining a good response It was, therefore, decided that policy issues should the subject of an allotment ‘policy ‘questionnaire and that all of the allotment site-specific information should be included within a separate allotment ‘site’ questionnaire A copy of the allotment policy and site questionnaires is shown in Appendix Z Distribution of Policy Questionnaires The period of fieldwork ran from March 2004 until mid June 2005 – approximately 16 months At the outset, all 388 English local authorities were contacted in order to identify an officer responsible for allotments Allotment officers were then sent an e mail and covering letter (as an attachment) requesting completion of an allotment ‘policy’ questionnaire They were offered the option of receiving a paper copy of the questionnaire Electronic versions were distributed via email hyperlink using Mercator ‘Snap’ survey software, version which enabled recipients to open questionnaires on-line and, by pressing a ‘submit’ button, returning it via e mail to the University of Derby Paper copies of policy questionnaires were mailed (including a Freepost reply envelope) to those who were unable to utilise the electronic version A total of 358 district or borough councils (92%) responded either by returning a questionnaire or stating that they were not responsible for managing allotments Nonresponders were chased as an on-going process throughout the whole period of data collection and, in the later stages of the field work, final reminder letters were sent to all non responding local authorities This process led to the receipt of 282 responses (73% of the total 388) which, after removing 41 duplicates, resulted in 241 valid entries The duplicate entries occurred for a variety of reasons The circulation of the questionnaire by e mail meant that forms were distributed to multiple sources beyond the control of the researchers Additionally, paper questionnaires were sometimes photocopied and circulated within council departments or forwarded to town or parish councils where it was thought by allotment officers that policy decisions were being made In some, though most likely rare, instances, district and borough councils had more than one policy resulting from responsibilities being allocated at town or parish council level within a given district or borough council 57 Distribution of Allotment Site Questionnaires At the outset, allotment site questionnaires were sent via email hyperlink plus an attached covering letter to all respondents of the policy questionnaire This was followed by a mailing of a paper questionnaire to town and parish councils that had originally been identified by local authorities as being responsible for allotment sites together with town and parish councils that were identified via response from the policy questionnaire This process led to the mailing of allotment site questionnaires to approximately 2,000 town or parish councils resulting in approximately 1,400 stating that there were no allotments within their area and 600 valid returns The electronic questionnaire was designed so that it could be opened, completed and submitted ‘on-line’ for each allotment site Allotment officers who did not return an electronic questionnaire within approximately two weeks were contacted to find out if they would prefer paper copies of the site questionnaire The process of first sending a policy questionnaire and following up with a site questionnaire was continued during the whole period of data collection and is described in Figure X In a minority of instances, such as when allotment officers were responsible for a large number of allotment sites and were unable to respond within four weeks, a shortened version of the questionnaire was posted as a paper or electronic spreadsheet according to preference It became apparent, in early 2005, that there had been a low return of responses from private allotment sites Therefore, in order to help improve response from private sites, arrangements were made with the Allotment Regeneration Initiative (ARI) to mail paper copies of the allotment site questionnaire to approximately 600 of their members that were thought to be managing private sites Arrangements were made to send additional questionnaires to those with more than one site This process led to the receipt of 3418 allotment site questionnaires 58 City Farms and Community Gardens An allotment site questionnaire was designed for city farms and community gardens on a similar basis as for the allotment site questionnaire (see Appendix Z) The Confederation of City Farms and Gardens (CFCG) assumed responsibility for mailing separately designed questionnaires to approximately 1,000 of their members of which about 95% were responsible for community gardens and the remainder for city farms The CFCG also made arrangements to contact its English members of the Allotment Regeneration Initiative with a view to securing responses from allotment sites, especially private sites that could not be identified by the process of contacting local authorities, as described above This process led to the receipt of 340 questionnaires Calculation of allotment areas and rental values The allotment site questionnaire made provision for respondents to quote the area of allotment sites as acres, hectares, square yards or square metres In many instances, respondents ignored the options provided and quoted areas in imperial measures such as rods, poles or perches A similar problem was encountered with respect to consistently reporting annual rental income It should be noted that, whilst one square rod / pole / perch is more accurately equivalent to 30.25 square yards or 25.292 square metres, it was thought more appropriate to use conversion factors of one rod to 30 square yards and to 25 square metres These rounded conversion factors are consistent with those used for the 1996 allotment survey and with the approximations that respondents were able to offer when answering the questionnaire The conversion factors used in this report to calculate standardised allotment areas and rental values are shown in Table Z below Table 1.Conversion factors used in the estimation of allotment areas and rental values Area specified by respondent One acre One hectare One lug (old term used in Norfolk) One square perch, square pole or square rod (usually referred to as ‘perches’, ‘poles’ or ‘rods’) Small plot (5 square rods) Large plot (10 square rods) Area recorded in data-set 4,047 square metres ( = 160 square rods) 10,000 square metres (= 395 square rods or 2.47 acres) 40 square metres 25 square metres (= 30 square yards) 125 square metres (= 150 square yards) 250 square metres (= 300 square yards) 59 Figure 2.Method of distribution of Allotment Policy and Site Questionnaires Policy questionnaires sent to Allotment Officers in LAs Upon receipt of policy questionnaire: site questionnaires sent to Allotment Associations, LAs & Town / Parish Councils Identification of Town / Parish Councils from policy Questionnaire and 1996 dataset 241 policy questionnaires & 3418 site questionnaires available for analysis Researchers chased non-responders to policy and site questionnaire by e mail and telephone ODPM sent Ministerial letter to non-responders of policy questionnaire ODPM sent final reminder letter to non-responders of policy questionnaire 60 Potential to compare the Allotment Survey carried out in 1997 with the present 2005 survey 1997 survey The total number of allotment sites identified in England in 1997 was 7,796 giving rise to almost 300,000 plots Since conducting this survey, there have been 331 disposals of statutory sites recorded at the ODPM which leads us to deduce that there should now be 7,465 allotment sites in England This number does not, however, take into account of the disposal of temporary sites for which recording is not mandatory If an additional 6% of disposals is allowed for, the number of remaining sites today would be expected to be in the order of 7,000 On this basis, an estimated ‘true’ number of allotment sites and plots and an estimated true number on the waiting list has been calculated and shown within the summary of key components of allotments shown in Table The three shaded columns in Table that show the estimated totals are projected figures that have been computed by multiplying each regional and England total obtained from the allotment policy questionnaire by a factor of 7,000 (the extrapolated estimate) divided by actual number of sites (4,937) estimated by allotment offers and recorded on the questionnaires = 1.42 2004/5 Allotment Policy Survey The present survey derives information about the number of allotment sites and plots from a policy and a site questionnaire The policy questionnaire requested respondents to state the number of allotment sites and plots for which their council is responsible, including sites under devolved management The 4,927 sites (190,431 plots), therefore, represents a best estimate of the total number of allotment sites in England However, this is likely to underestimate the true figure because not all councils responded and some may have assumed that allotments managed by town and parish councils within their district did not come within their jurisdiction Assuming that the true number of allotments is around 7,000, council allotment officers are aware of approximately two-thirds of these and the remainder, it seems, reside within the province of private and charitable allotment associations There are some explanations as to why allotment officers where not willing or able to identify a significant minority of allotment sites within their districts Allotment associations are run independently and it seems that their existence is known to relatively few individuals There is a paucity of information about them which is often not disseminated beyond the local environs of the communities they serve There also seems to be widespread concern about the legal implications of the Data Protection Act should the personal details of contacts be released without prior permission to outsiders such as researchers 2004/5 Allotment Site Survey Whilst the 2004/5 allotment policy questionnaire identified 4,927 allotment sites known to council allotment officers, detailed information was obtained from the site questionnaire for only 3,418 (69%) of these sites As previously mentioned, the shortfall was likely to be due to a lack of response from a small minority of councils and due to the inability of the researchers to make contact with independent charitable and private 61 allotment associations Lack of response was also likely to be due to the inability of those responsible for allotments to provide the information requested The questionnaire stated that certain information, such as financial details and grid reference, were optional, but some respondents may still have been deterred by the length of the questionnaire Limitation of comparisons between 1997 and 2004/5 An explanation has already been provided (see above) for the substantial differences between the raw numbers for allotment sites and plots derived in 1997 compared with the present survey This, regrettably, means that it would be extremely unwise to directly compare the raw numbers of sites and plots obtained from the current survey with the figures presented in the 1997 report The present survey has captured a sample of the total number of allotment sites which, if our estimate of the true total of around 7,000 sites is correct, means that there is detailed information for about 49% of all allotment sites in England The extent to which the sites about which information has been obtained represent the total population cannot be automatically assumed but there is no reason to suppose that this is not the case On the contrary, the average number of plots per site of 43 derived from the site questionnaire in 2004/5 compares well with 38 plots per site obtained from the 1997 survey This suggests that, in terms of the size of each site, the sample in 2004/5 is similar to the total population of sites recorded in 1997 The immediate question that arises from the above discussion is whether or not any comparisons at all can be made between the two sets of data First, it is worth pointing out that the present survey provides rich data on allotment policy that was not available in the 1997 survey Second, the site questionnaire furnishes greater detail about the physical infrastructure, location and usage of allotment sites than may be found in the 1997 report Thirdly, there are valid comparisons that may be made between the two periods on the assumption that the 2004/5 is representative of the total population of allotment sites In particular, from the policy questionnaire, the number of plots per 1,000 household, plots per 1000 population and percentage vacant plots out of total plots may all be compared with the headline statistics for England and per region in 1997 From the current allotment site questionnaire, we may also be confident in making comparisons with respect to average statistics such as: mean no of plots per site, rods (and other areas) per site and average rental values One final caveat should be borne in mind in relation to comparing allotment statistics by county and unitary authority in 2004/ compared with 1997 The counties and administrative areas presented in 2004 are those derived by PLUS 1, Planning and Land Use Statistics Division, ODPM (2005) These areas take account of a number of boundary changes that mainly came into effect between 1996 and 1998 when the English Unitary Authorities were formed Care should, therefore, be exercised when making any comparisons between allotment statistics in 2004/5 at county / unitary authority level 62 Appendix 2.Questionnaires Copy of Allotment Policy Questionnaire (click on the hyperlink text below to open a pdf using Adobe software) policypdf.pdf Copy of Allotment Site Questionnaire (click on hyperlink text below to open a pdf using Adobe software) site 25 june pdf Copy of City Farms and Gardens Questionnaire (click on hyperlink text below to open a pdf using Adobe software) CFCG 25 June pdf The Questionnaires are supplied also in separate files 63 Appendix 3: Summary glossary Allotment plots are allocated by local council [or private owners] to individuals, or families, usually identified with one name Normally, each name on a waiting list [see below] is allocated one plot Allotment plots vary in size, but are mainly of `10 rods` in size This traditional measure is normally used for allotment, and indicates a plot 10yards by 30yards in size In recent decades, an increasing diversity of allotment plot size has become familiar, but not prevalent, as local councils have varied sizes available to respond to demand for smaller plots, and to increase plot available in response to local demand and supply adjustments Statutory sites are allotment sites given some protection by legislation as they are provided as allotment sites Permission to change these sites, or part thereof, from allotment use is required through notification of intent to so to the Secretary of State ODPM Temporary sites are lands that have been used as allotments for a period of time, that may be for over a century, and yet the land has never been allocated for such use on a `permanent` basis, as in the case of Statutory Sites Disposals: from time to time allotments may be used for development for other uses, ie become disposed of Statutory sites are protected and therefore local council seeking to dispose of such sites are required to notify the Secretary of State, ODPM, to secure permission to so Such requests and their decisions are recorded by ODPM Waiting lists are kept by many councils, though not a statutory requirement, as a ongoing record of allotment demand, from which plots are allocated according to position on the list Vacant plots are allotment plots that, at time of this survey, were not rented Plots may be vacant temporarily on account of illness, and others may for other reasons cease use of their plot In some cases individuals may fail to renew their rent at the appropriate time, and so a plot may be identified as vacant City Farms and Community Gardens Lease and licence These are categories of holding of sites by city farms and community gardens Appendix Key components of allotments County / Unitary Authorities County / Unitary Authority Bath and North East Somerset to Milton Keynes Bath and North East Somerset Bedfordshire Blackburn with Darwen Blackpool Bournemouth Bristol, City of Buckinghamshire No of LAs No of sites No of plots 19 950 1 1 10 108 14 764 401 417 368 4500 777 No of vacant plots No on waiting list Population Households 30 240 169040 71115 174 NR 36 66 NR 80 NR NR 11 45 300 32 147911 137470 142283 163444 380615 327853 59597 53407 63940 72212 162090 128030 64 Cambridgeshire Cheshire Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 92 64 24 365 1135 479 66 230 222 104 101 552658 440692 275944 222873 184742 118552 Cumbria Darlington Derby Derbyshire Devon Dorset Durham East Riding of Yorkshire East Sussex Essex Gloucestershire Greater London Greater Manchester Halton Hampshire Hartlepool Hertfordshire Isle of Wight Kent Kingston upon Hull, City of 1 3 6 23 10 10 108 13 18 68 70 17 152 41 63 35 602 271 15 100 16 137 25 100 25 2216 525 NR 1797 2133 1052 3791 99 1099 2491 1632 33188 9003 286 4286 1057 5736 700 3592 1800 62 525 NR 115 100 65 185 20 206 512 26 4929 692 250 79 1063 15 400 600 267 NR NR 92 89 138 93 53 47 1951 457 46 522 78 126 87 108 45 437830 97838 221708 637645 229693 152929 399477 314113 310480 624562 730218 5266164 2482328 118208 987267 88611 1033977 132731 914541 243589 187884 42309 92405 268176 95692 66572 168648 131084 133992 256945 304380 2116092 1040231 47948 398251 37385 420650 57519 371132 104288 Lancashire Leicester Leicestershire Lincolnshire Luton Merseyside Middlesbrough Milton Keynes 10 3 1 98 46 40 30 15 75 16 2875 3590 1402 1745 1107 3672 800 948 37 940 212 59 300 722 200 179 204 NR 68 181 30 48 999518 279921 553889 220860 184371 902225 134855 207057 413682 111148 231780 93504 70755 381763 55164 83359 1 5 1 1 32 15 56 70 54 92 24 32 1500 1986 473 796 4906 2991 3200 3973 503 NR 1000 390 1800 38 793 155 35 2069 22 NR 672 68 NR 32 11 229 47 NR 36 130 NR 72 15 120 100 200 259 256895 157979 152849 257579 481288 276161 266988 536638 247412 156061 240720 138288 186701 112922 66054 64014 109803 199075 117245 116112 225892 98984 65380 102540 59047 78719 Norfolk North East Lincolnshire North Lincolnshire North Yorkshire Northamptonshire Northumberland Nottingham Nottinghamshire Oxfordshire Peterborough Plymouth Poole Portsmouth 65 Reading Shropshire Slough Somerset South Yorkshire Southampton Southend-on-Sea Staffordshire Stoke-on-Trent Suffolk Surrey Swindon Telford and Wreckin The City of Brighton and Hove Thurrock Torbay Tyne and Wear Warrington Warwickshire West Midlands West Sussex West Yorkshire Wiltshire Windsor and Maidenhead Worcestershire York 1 1 1 23 23 13 12 164 23 35 76 87 83 29 37 1178 495 860 93 5214 1800 350 767 3420 2706 4615 1319 318 2100 278 42 317 989 150 120 62 798 764 952 289 33 120 50 NR 20 559 30 12 86 NR 99 59 23 15 500 143096 226065 119067 103869 731297 217445 160257 292511 240636 996157 781968 180051 158325 247817 57877 94152 44987 42881 309787 91217 70978 117874 103196 420008 319842 75154 63768 114479 1 5 3 24 18 323 10 32 242 210 378 25 16 50 19 996 NR 9420 236 400 11338 2201 10439 1000 875 1837 983 12 358 50 581 223 1838 62 47 76 162 NR 158 1188 74 25 94 403 130 60 21 50 143128 129706 1075938 191080 206585 2018162 379027 2079211 307601 133626 259997 181094 58485 57420 462824 78030 85166 813469 213857 854040 126380 54261 105880 76920 NR = Nil Return 66 ... farms in England;  produce a report and summary detailing findings;  develop a database of information on allotments, community gardens and city farms, including location details;  Inform... of use owing to local site disposals, as well as improvement in plot and site management, and/or increased demand 21 over diminishing supply Increases in the waiting list have continued in the... into areas of land including allotments Their popularity was reversed during the nineteen seventies as a result of increasing attention to diet, organic food and wider environmental issues, including