Page 5 - ALG Issue 1 2020

President’s
scribblings
By the time you’re reading this, I hope you have had a pleasant Christmas and I wish you a very Happy New Year and lots of enjoyment on your allotments.
I also hope it is a little bit drier underfoot on the allotment after the exceptionally wet and frustrating back end of 2019, preventing much of the winter preparation taking place, unless of course you were lucky and caught the occasional dry day without sinking knee-deep in mud.
On a brighter note, I hope you have noticed an increase in interest in allotment gardening over the last year as I have, and the subsequent rise in waiting list numbers. I also felt that
the NAS has presented a much more positive image of itself in 2019 and has made huge steps forward in updating its infrastructure. We still need to shout a lot, lot louder and make ourselves heard however, to let people know what we are about and what we can offer.
I was rather alarmed this week to
see an allotment group on Facebook creating a campaign to encourage councils and associations to offer half and quarter plots to those who don’t have the time and energy to garden
a full-size plot, as if it was something new. Of course, I replied instantly to say that the NAS and the old ARI had been recommending this same thing for many years and it wasn’t something new.
I am also very alarmed by the number of disputes and legal situations Head Office has had to deal with in 2019,
a number of which are to do with personality clashes, lack of civility and sometimes just poor management. Many of these situations could be avoided if our NAS recommended policies and procedures were adopted and followed. If adhered to, they
would avoid many of these conflicts before they escalated to a state requiring intervention. I sincerely hope this situation improves next year, allowing for a more positive use of our time. Don’t forget, most of us in the organisation are volunteers just like many of you; we give our time freely and want to spend that time positively.
Don’t forget 2020 is our 90th year and
a special AGM will be held in Leeds. There will be lots to do in close proximity to the venue so make sure you come along and support your organisation. You could even make a weekend of it.
I am also looking forward to the many garden shows this year, where we shall be promoting our organisation; I am already booked in to attend some. Get involved; it can be great fun and will help us spread the word about our great organisation and our very beneficial activity. We participated in some filming on my allotment site two years ago and the film company have just been in touch once again to
We still need to shout a lot, lot louder and make ourselves heard however, to let people know what we are about and what we can offer.
say they are approaching the BBC and Channel 4 in trying to create a down to earth allotment series. That should be exciting if they manage to pull it off.
There are many positive moves taking place in the allotment world, one being the provision of new alloments being created as a condition attached to new housing developments. If you have any influence on planning departments, this needs bringing to their attention. There are also a number of associations taking advantage of becoming an Industrial and Providential Society,
now known as a Co-operative and Community Benefit Society, which
can be arranged very reasonably under the NAS umberella; this is as
a safeguard for their officers and also the opportunity for a more flexible management system, especially where longer leases or covenanted land are concerned.
Many plotholders have already taken advantage of the free Individual Plotholder Liability insurance, have you?
Well the New Year has begun. I hope you have a very productive season and I look forward to seeing many of you on my travels prior to or at the special AGM in Leeds. Enjoy your allotment gardening and have a wonderful year.
Phil Gomersall
Chrysanthemums Direct
www.chrysanthemumsdirect.co.uk
Holmes Chapel Road, Over Peover, Knutsford, Cheshire. WA16 9RA
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sales@chrysanthemumsdirect.co.uk 0800 046 7443
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19442.25 Shield Allotment Advert.indd 1
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Allotment and Leisure Gardener 5