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Moss Park Allotments
– Stretford, Manchester
Summer Show and
Awards Presentations 2017
What a fantastic day we had on Saturday 2nd September when we welcomed
the Mayor and Mayoress of Trafford,
and hosted Trafford Borough Council’s allotment awards as a part of our own Annual Show and Awards Presentation Day.
With the weather smiling on us we were able to entertain well over 100 guests, with a large turnout of fellow allotmenteers from
Common Land
The issue below relates to an application to de-register Common Land under Section 16 of the Commons Act 2006.
A non-refundable fee of £4900 is payable on all applications under Section 16. The issues are dealt with by the Planning Inspectorate on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The timescale for applications is dependant on the nature / extent of the proposals and the quality of the information provided. This can also be in uenced by the number of representations received and the procedure followed. In more complex cases an inquiry or hearing may have to take place.
the other 36 sites across the Borough. The setting was perfect with the marquees decorated, tables dressed with Frank’s fantastic ower arrangements, and the verandah area oral display was stunning.
We received so many compliments from our guests; it was a brilliant day. And of course to accept the trophy for the Best Site in the Borough at our own show was something quite special. The number
of positive comments made from other allotment sites were numerous, and the Mayor himself was extremely impressed with our beautiful site. I feel very privileged to be Chairman of our extremely proactive society and I am proud of our collective achievements throughout 2017 - long may it continue!
Dave Clancy
Poorlots Allotment Site, Cadishead
Firstly I’d like to give you a very brief history of the problem. An area of 22 plots was grassed over by Irlam District Council in the late 60s and turned into Common Land. In 2004, when our society was formed, the rst thing I tried to do was to get this area turned back into allotment plots, mainly due to the fact we had a waiting list of over 100 names. For most of the remaining 10 years I found nothing but strong resistance from the Council to enter into any discussions regarding the reinstatement of the land to allotments. Then Annie Surtees from Salford Council came on board and nally I had someone who would not only listen but put all her time and effort into trying to rectify the problem.
It was discovered under the investigation that not only the area of 22 plots had been registered as Common Land but the WHOLE SITE. So you can see that if the decision of the hearing is against reinstatement potentially the whole site is at
risk. This hearing has now been put back from the 7th February 2018 to June of next year. The need to get this settled urgently
is paramount, as plot holders are wondering if they should be working their plots if they could be taken off them in mid-season next year. Also until I know if we are getting the land back I can’t start applying for funding to reinstate the area into allotment
plots. This would be a huge undertaking which will cost well over £100,000 to complete due to the nature of the land. If I can’t start applying for funding until the latter part of next year it would be too late to start work before the bad weather in the winter.
The Council have been contacted and told the need for them to try and put pressure on the Planning Inspectorate to reinstate the original hearing date.
Alan Cavanagh (Chair of Poorlots Allotment Society)
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