Page 62 - ALG Issue 3 2019

East Midlands
Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Northamptonshire and Rutland
Welcome to our new members...
Crick Allotment Association
Foxby Hill Allotment Garden Society Hugglescote Donnington-Le-Heath Allotments Peaksfield Allotment Association
Whiffle Pig C.I.C
2 Landowners
Grimoldby and Manby Parish Council 5 Individual Members
REPRESENTATIVE
Mr Paul Howgill
37 Meredith Road, Rowley Fields, Leicester LE3 2EP 07803 828 777 allotmentbaron@aol.com
MENTOR
Adam Murphy
East Midlands (North) 0845 4786 352 amurphy.nas@gmail.com
MENTOR
Sandra Motley
East Midlands (South) 0845 013 0118 smotley.nas@gmail.com
Volunteer management of sites – the ups and downs
Over the past 3 years, one of the most common issues I have been asked
to assist with or give guidance to has been self-management of allotments. Many parish councils, town councils and city/county councils are able to see the cost savings in self-managed sites. Also, in my view, they can be far better and fairer-managed given a robust constitution, tenancy agreement and lease.
In Leicester City, the majority of the 3,185 allotments are run by self- managed groups (societies). Only
177 small plots on 10 sites are direct lets from Leicester City Council. This generally runs very well but, like all families, the allotment society life
can be disturbed by disputes and as a rule, the NAS, at local levels, has been able to help solve issues with the legal guidance from NAS, Corby. A recent sad case was of a site that had long been without any of the constitutional controls such as committees and EGM being convened. It was all left to one volunteer who did everything – or a few things, in an autocratic and poor way. Only being a small site, the problems could be seen by all, but no one wanted to solve it themselves. This is an ongoing situation which I hope will come to a happy conclusion.
My second story, again, is a little strange but basically is a power struggle between a duly elected committee and individuals who do not want to be told by an elected committee how the society should be run. Some actually took office for a brief time
but stood down after a short period. Unfortunately, instead of allowing officers to carry out their duties, the opposition wanted to bring down anyone who opposed their views, even if they were not sure what they stood for. Again, at the time of writing this article, the issues are ongoing. The hope is that a well-run committee will this time be allowed to carry out its duties.
My third story is one that I hope has now ended with a very nice, supportive group running a pleasant site. The difficult issue handled by this society
is possibly an extreme case. A relative of a plotholder was gaining access
to the site. Not being a member,
the relative was informed that their relative’s presence was not permitted unescorted by a member of the society or the member. This was ignored and resulted in two good officers standing down from their positions as the issue became very heated. Over a six-month period, the re-formed committee hung on to control and at a recent AGM were
If a differing view to yours is adopted, allow time to see if matters evolve to a better outcome
able to elect a full committee with new officers. The future looks fine for this small site, but without the steadfast resolve of the remaining officers and committee members, with the help of NAS, a very different outcome may have occurred.
The whole point of this rant is that you are only as good as the quality of the volunteers who stand for office at your AGM. Offer them support and try to attend your AGM. Be constructive in complaints or differences. If a differing view to yours is adopted, allow time
to see if matters evolve to a better outcome. Evolution not revolution, I find, is the best method of change. This also goes for constitutions and tenancy agreements. Yes, they may be old and may seem outdated, but the alteration in haste may result in more problems in the future.
Good gardening
Paul Howgill East Midlands Regional representative
No! 100%
Yes!
Maybe
Great
Never!
No!
Perfect
62 Allotment and Leisure Gardener