Page 5 - ALG Issue 2 2016

chairman’scomments
Those of you who take the trouble to read my ramblings will remember in the last issue of 2015 I reported the loss of Holly, the Legal Assistant who was emigrating to Australia. Well, I am pleased to announce that her replacement has taken up his position. So if you ring the of ce and a male voice answers, you have not got a wrong number, the person answering will be Christian Kirkpatrick. Christian studied for his Law Degree along with Psychology at Nottingham Trent University and has now joined us to learn the ropes as Legal Assistant to Liz Bunting. Good
luck to him in his new career.
sites to become self-managed, or under devolved management, depending upon the politics or fashion of the moment; all attempts
to reduce the costs to the LA. Personally I am a big believer in self- management, but I have been around long enough to know that it is not a panacea and is not suitable for all occasions and situations. We are now hearing of local authorities that are looking to commercial companies, although if the authority cannot run it at a small cost
to the ratepayers I don’t see how a commercial enterprise, that
It is, of course, getting close to the time of our
Annual General Meeting this year. As I am sure
you are all now aware, it is to be held in York, that
fabulous historic northern city. To the best of my
knowledge it is the farthest north that the AGM
has been held for many years. I am a little biased, but I’m hoping that the members from all the northern regions, not just Yorkshire, will make this a particularly successful meeting.
Of course the motion of most interest must be the presentation of the new rules and associated items. It has taken more than two years and been worked on by two different subcommittees and we now have a draft ready to be presented to the AGM. I, along with the Management Committee, believe that this updated version of the rules is a great improvement on our current version, and along with the standards and procedures, should see us in good stead for a number of years. Should the rules, after the examination of any amendments, not be adopted then we can look forward to many more years of poor governance supported by outdated rules.
Unfortunately we are still hearing of local authorities that are attempting to make their allotment ‘Service’ cost neutral. The usual way is to hike the rents up by ridiculous amounts or encourage
Personally I am a big believer in self- management
by its very nature, has to make a pro t, can
hope to provide such a service. Others have reportedly asked voluntary organisations such as community groups to undertake the work. Have they the ability and can volunteers provide the amount of effort required to run a number of sites that could encompass hundreds of plots, or do
they think it will be easy and that pro ts they can make from the rents will enrich their coffers? Are they aware of statutory and temporary sites? Do they know of the many acts concerning allotments and where are they going to get such advice when it is needed? Are they in fact capable of the day-to-day management of such an enterprise? Self-management by allotment federations (for example) has been seen to work successfully, but others including voluntary groups have failed. Are the local authorities aware that as Landlord Paramount they cannot absolve their responsibilities along with the lease. If the new landlord fails, or other such problems occur then the LA still has to pick up the pieces? They should do, as has already happened, and it could be at a very high cost.
Enough of doom and gloom; let’s hope it is a warm and not too wet spring and I look forward to meeting many of you at York.
Tony Heeson, Management Committee Chairman
Head Of ce
fromthepresident
Dear Members - how the time does y. Here we are in March
(at the time of writing) already and spring has sprung; well it has been stopping and starting since the beginning of the year really. I trust your potatoes are well-chitted and may already be planted and on their way. Let’s look forward to a great allotment year.
Since we last ‘spoke’ it has been a busy time for the NAS. The work on the rules has taken up much of the time and we hope that you will all try to attend the AGM to nalise and agree the new rules to take the Society forward and well into the future.
The same has been happening in other societies and associations. The Ipswich Association has updated its constitution and rules. Jeff, Liz and I visited the Great Yarmouth Society to assist them in their deliberations for updating their constitution and rules.
excellent projects on allotments, which ensure the inclusion of everyone in society. I would like to ask all of you to send in to
me and the of ce some of the great work that is achieved in
the areas of social inclusion, youth and school projects. Also projects that enable the physically disabled and those with mental health issues to join us on the allotments. Let us know about environmental projects that you may have, ensuring corridors
for wildlife or perhaps you are nurturing an endangered species
on your site. Any projects that you have, I would love to know about them and we can also make sure that the international allotment community is also aware about them. I am proud of all that you do and want to brag to the international about how great you all are. Please send some reports with photographs and, if possible, a short PowerPoint presentation that I can enter in the international magazine and website and also request consideration for International Diplomas for you to display in recognition of
your work. We have diplomas for social activities, environmental activities, innovative projects and all sorts. I urge you to visit on to www.jardins-familiaux.org/of ce/eof ce.html and see what
is happening around the International members’ areas and let
It is an important exercise for all societies to constantly look at their rules to ensure they are t for the modern times. Are they in line with present day legislation and follow good governance practice? Do they make their societies strong and transparent to members so all may work together to ensure their longevity in the modern world? I advise you all to have a good look at your constitutions; we are all guilty of letting things
continue without actually realising that we may
not be working within our constitutions and
in fact, sometimes be inadvertently breaking
them! Your committees are all volunteers and
as each new member of a local group joins
the committee, we do not always think to
show them the constitution and rules by which
the group are governed, yet we expect them to somehow know and work to them. It is spring time so why not do some spring cleaning and get your paperwork dusted down and updated.
Enough of this talk; let’s get down to some really good
news. We are an important part of the International Allotments Organisation and we need to make sure that the international community is aware of all the good work that we do on our allotment sites. I know that there are so many excellent allotment sites that go beyond regular allotment work and assist with some
us get some of your projects more widely appreciated. To do this, log on to the site, go to publications and read the latest Hyphen where you will nd the projects that have been awarded diplomas and you will see that your work is equal to these excellent projects that have already been recognised. So folks, please send as many projects with a PowerPoint
if possible and photos as soon as possible. I would also like to make a PowerPoint presentation of projects around the UK for the International Congress in Vienna in August where hundreds of delegates from around the International Membership will be attending. Maybe you would like to come too. I would love to be inundated with your projects so don’t be shy, send them all in to me please. I’m proud of you and want bragging rights please!
Karen Kenny, Your President
Let us know about environmental projects that you may have
5