Page 6 - ALG Issue 4 2016

Head Of ce
fromthepresident
Well, how has summer been? Mmm... good and bad methinks. I have had lots of tomatoes and some beans! A lot has been happening on the allotment scene, most importantly, the result
of the government’s deliberations on the Watford issue, which is of great importance to the whole allotment movement. Yet again, they appear
to have taken scant notice of the guidelines and have ruled in favour of Watford Council and against the people of Watford, endeavouring to deprive them of this historic site in the centre
of a residential area in need of the bene ts allotments
John Ashton (the outgoing President)
who has already written a piece on the importance of gardening as therapy and especially allotments in the social issues. We were also fortunate to converse with the incoming President and he too was very interested and supportive, and these are contacts that we shall continue. Others from various sections of the health service were also suitably impressed and it is important that we attend these conferences and shows. I know many of you represent us locally doing a similar job of spreading the importance of allotments in society
to local government and other in uential organisations as well as
countries do not and are facing the same raids on their sites by developers as we are, while their waiting lists continue to grow.
You will see the reports of the Assembly and Congress elsewhere.
Okay now for the advert again - this is of prime importance. As you all know my term of of ce as your President is coming to an end and we need nominations
from you for my replacement.These nominations must be in before the end of the year so please, please look around and nd some suitable candidates. It is for the members to elect the President and if there are no nominations for
you to make a choice, there will be no one elected by the people. I will not be standing again; I have been very proud to represent you and continue to do so to the best of my ability until June of 2017. My family, however, have threatened me with dire consequences if I do not retire and stay retired this time! I am sure you all understand. So please try to nd some nominees.
You will see that one of our projects has been awarded an international diploma. I would like for us to have more international diplomas; please send me details of your project on your site as there are various categories for diplomas. Let us try and beat the Netherlands; among the 13 diplomas awarded they took home four! I have challenged them for next year to at least equal that, but to beat it would be better! Come on folks; let’s show the world how great Great Britain’s allotments are.
Merry Christmas Karen Kenny
bring to society.
We, the Society,
are supporting yet
another challenge
to this ruling by the
Watford Society
and have made
submissions in
support pointing
out the importance of this site and this
decision to allotments generally. We
the public. I thank you all for your continued support and passion for allotments and their future. We have been invited to attend the 2017 FPH conference which I hope we will be able to accept.
ght for your opportunities to garden
I hope all of you that opened your sites for National Allotments week and at other times, had success, spread the word and perhaps created some much needed funds for your associations. This is our great opportunity to show the locals what a great community the allotments are;
an inclusive form of recreation and social activity.
I have just returned from Austria where we are important members of the International Association and have an integral part to play. We are fortunate to have legislation that goes some way to protecting our plots. Many of our fellow
legalupdate Meanwhile, just after the AGM in
locally on an allotment near you.
June, Diane and I attended the Faculty of Public Health’s annual conference in Brighton, representing the allotments with a prize winning stand! It was an important conference to attend, bringing us into contact with many workers in the health industry, many of whom learned much about the bene ts allotments bring to public health issues. We were very pleased to have the support of Professor
I thank you all for your continued support and passion for allotments and their future.
Legal
Water Part I – What do you need to know?
Allotment sites, like any other owners or occupiers of premises with a public water supply, do have a duty to comply with the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999. The objectives of the regulations are to prevent waste, misuse, undue consumption and more importantly, contamination of the public drinking water supply.
These regulations apply to all domestic, commercial and agricultural premises that receive
The Private Supply Regulations will not be covered in this article but if you require further information on these, please call 01536 266576.
Although the Water Supply (Water Fitting) Regulations are not retrospective where there is a signi cant risk of contamination from a tting installed prior to the introduction of the current regulations, even if it complied at the time of the installation, the water supplier can, using the Water Industry Acts, insist on improvements or recti cation.
The Water Industry Act 1991 outlines the responsibilities and penalties that are placed on both the water suppliers and customers. The supplier has to supply water which is wholesome, in other words, of suitable quality for drinking purposes. The duty for enforcing these regulations has been given to the water suppliers by the Government. This is the reason the suppliers grant consent for proposed installations and inspect new and existing premises.
The regulations require that water suppliers must be given
prior noti cation of all new installations, certain speci ed items of equipment and extensions or alterations of plumbing systems in non
domestic and agricultural premises. Under the legislation the supplier has
ten working days from the receipt of a noti cation in which to refuse or grant consent, with or without conditions.
water from the public mains supply. The regulations are also applicable to sites which have
a dual water supply i.e. where plumbing systems are connected to both the public mains and also
a private source of water in the form of a spring or borehole. If a site is supplied solely from a private supply with no main
connection at all, then
the above regulations
will not apply but the
Private Water Supply
Regulations will have to
be taken into account.
The regulations are also
applicable to sites which have a dual water supply
6