c. Legislation

Understanding allotments related legislation can be a challenge. To manage allotments effectively, councils need to navigate various legislation. Key concerns include rules on land disposal, meeting demand for allotments, and regulations on how plots are used, all of which are important to both local authorities and allotment holders.

The Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908 - deals with the Provision of Allotments, Powers of Councils and Acquisition of Land.

Local councils are required to audit allotment provision as part of the Planning Policy Guidance 17. When assessing demand, the local authority must take into account any written representations on the need for allotments by any six residents on the electoral register or persons liable to pay council tax. (section 23(2) of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908).

Where there is a demand for allotments; the Councils have a statutory duty to provide a sufficient number of plots. There is no legal national minimum provision standard, but councils do have to audit allotments, set standards of provision, and assess their actual provision against these standards as part of Planning Policy Guidance 17 (PPG17). Most allotment strategies quote the 1969 Thorpe Report which recommends a minimum provision equivalent to 15 per 1,000 households, but this is not legally binding.

There is no legal minimum size for an allotment. The Allotments Act 1922 defines 'allotment gardens' as 'an allotment not exceeding forty poles in extent which is mainly cultivated by the occupier for the production of vegetables and fruit crops for consumption by himself or his family'. (Section 22). It is generally accepted that the average plot is 300 square yards or 250 square metres.

If it has no spare land, a Council can make an application for compulsory hiring under the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908. Furthermore, planning permission is not required for allotments on land previously used for agriculture.

The Allotments Act 1925 - specifies that land purchased or appropriated by local authorities for use as allotments must not be disposed of without Ministerial consent. The Secretary of State must be satisfied that 'adequate provision will be made for allotment holders displaced by the action of the local authority, or that such provision is unnecessary or not reasonably practicable'. (Section 8).

Extensive allotments related legislation can be found here.