Page 54 - ALG 1 2018 html5 version

West Midlands
“Teabags, bras and tights”
“Teabags, bras and tights” was the title of the talk which preceded the 2017 West Midlands Region A.G.M. held at May Lane Allotments, Kings Heath in November. It was the site to which Chris Brown, the late BDAC Secretary, belonged.
The venue had been booked just before she died,
and it was very sobering remembering her as we
approached the pavilion to be greeted by her
husband.
Tom Terrence, acting as Chair, welcomed the meeting to the site and introduced Darren Rudge, who gave a very informative and humorous talk on money-saving tips for plot holders.
Aspirin, Epsom salts, and baking soda* are just a few of the items to be removed from the kitchen shelves when no one is looking, and taken to the allotment site for use as feed or fungicide. A stay in a hotel was recommended in order to acquire shower caps to use as propagator covers - as long as they are turned inside-out daily to allow the condensation to evaporate. So it went on: milk, soap, lard, bananas, tea, eggs and wallpaper paste all have their uses. Vacuum cleaner uff, horse hair and slug deterrents were included as was, nally, a recipe for marrow rum; roll on next year’s crop of marrows!
After the tea break, the of cial part of the AGM began with the Acting Chairman, Tom Terrence, opening the meeting by welcoming everyone to May Lane Allotments and thanking Darren Rudge for his talk on saving money on allotments.
The various of cers for the Region gave their reports, with the Secretary highlighting the opportunity to travel to Sri Lanka with the Society, and thus the chance to collect shower caps on the way. Members’ attention was drawn to the Society’s website with all its informative lea ets on a wide range of relevant topics. The Treasurer was delighted to report that the books had again balanced, and the accounts were accepted.
The Regional Representative, in re ective mood, was concerned that younger members were not putting themselves forward to get involved with the Society and requested that we try to encourage younger members to get involved with NSALG. There were
various ongoing issues, including a number of Section 8s, which necessitated visits to sites, lots of investigation, and contact with a number of Local Authorities. Legal advice from Liz Bunting at Head Of ce had proved invaluable.
The Regional Mentor, Colin Bedford, advised that since he had taken up the post, he had been extremely busy providing training to parish clerks, and had been heavily involved with a council who had recently taken the decision to make all their allotment sites self-
Welcome to our new members...
1 Landowner
Bilbrook Parish Council
Broadway South Allotments Association Dovedale Allotment Association
The Kent Allotment Garden Association 6 individual members
managed. It
was gratifying to see
these new associations now
taking control of their sites and moving forwards with great support from the council. He had been involved with the setting up of constitutions, rules, tenancy agreements etc. It was very rewarding to see how things have progressed and he was obviously still able to give support as and when necessary.
John Outhwaite updated the meeting on the above event and various meetings which were taking place over the next few weeks. He asked that anyone who was interested in growing plants, or helping out at the Gardeners World Live Show in June, should contact either himself or the Committee as soon as possible.
The dates of Quarterly Meetings in 2018 were announced, and members were invited to volunteer to host the 2018 meetings, with the cost of room hire and light refreshments covered by the Region.
*Use of Baking powder (potassium bicarbonate) as a pesticide is approved as a Commodity Substance under Control of Pesticides Regulations (Commodity
substances are chemicals
which have a variety of non-pesticide uses as well as minor uses as pesticides). It acts as a mild fungicide and is very safe to use but the HSE advise use of PPE when applying.
John McNab
Check out page 7 for exciting new member bene t
Recognition for Birmingham Allotments
At the Chamberlain Awards for Birmingham City employees, the Allotment Of cer Nichola Bradley was unexpectedly presented with a Special Recognition award for her allotment work. In the citation the vital importance of the partnership with Birmingham and Allotments Confederation was emphasised three times. Clive Birch (BDAC Chairman) and Barbara Smith (Secretary) were guests at this prestigious awards meeting.
Birmingham has 100+ sites with 7,500 plots and 85 local allotment committees managing their sites on a day-to-day basis. We have a structure for dealing with issues on sites (the vast majority are dealt with by the site committees). Local advisors
are linked to sites; these local advisors report to local executive members. Serious or legal issues are dealt with by BDAC Of cers, and we have a complaints panel which can meet and make
recommendations to the City Allotment Of cer.
We are not a fully self-managed area; rents are set by City
(with BDAC), collected onsite, and sent to the Allotment Of cer. Sites received 10% of rent paid by tenants, money for repairs and maintenance, and money to pay water bills and convenience cleansing money.
All of Birmingham Allotment Tenants are members of BDAC. We represent both individuals and committees in discussion, as well as for negotiations and issues resolutions. The allotments are the only leisure area which has achieved Full Cost recovery through rent payments.
Clive Birch Chairman BDAC
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