BAYDON PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of meeting held on 19 October 2009 APPENDIX 1

ITEM 7.7 NALC Option 2 Resolution

KEY POINTS DESCRIBED BY CHAIRMAN

As a point of information, there is a mandatory obligation under s.23  ss.1 of the Smallholdings and Allotments Act 1908 to provide allotments.

(i)  Land was purchased for recreational use, as written in the Baydon Community Project document in 1993 ahead of the land purchase in 1994.

(ii) A bank account was set up called the Baydon Project and exists to this day.

(iii) On 5 May 1994 Kennet District Council wrote to Mrs  Enid Johnson stating “your application for grant aid for Baydon Community Project has been approved and a cheque for £1500 is enclosed”.

(iv) On 11 July 1994 Kennet District Council wrote “It would be in order for you to sell this land with the proviso that there is no alteration to the intended use of the land for which the Authority made a grant”.

(v) The Sylvia Mather Trust donated £500 to the field purchase, described as for recreational use.

Thus  the land was undoubtedly purchased for recreational use. He suggested Councillors were not aware of this information last year. Recreational land is termed Open Space, as defined by  s. 336 (1) Town and County Planning Act 1990 and within PPS8 A2 allotments are one  example of such land.

(vi) Before any of this happened, in 1980 a High Court Judge (Haworth v. Borough of Reigate and Banstead) decreed that allotment working is a recreational pursuit.

(vii) In 1998 a change of use planning application by the Parish Council was granted changing the Parish Field from agricultural to recreation/amenity use. A skate boarding facility had been proposed and this  prompted a planning check. It was realised that the  change of use had not been submitted in 1994.

(viii) There was little guidance offered about procedure ahead of the decision for allotments on the Parish Field, taken in October 2007.

(ix) There are only seven letters or emails from two residents addressed to the Parish Council up to the end of August 2009 in the files. No objections were voiced at  Parish Assembly meetings.

(x) The Village Plan 2009 records that a majority of residents would prefer the allotment facility to  be retained as it is.

(xi) Communications between Mrs Liz Carmichael and the legal services of National Association of Local Councils legal services  last year resulted in two options being proposed. At the meeting dated  20 April 2009 the Parish Council adopted Option 2 as the enabling decision,  which meant that part of the Parish Field  would continue to be used for allotments. Retrospective appropriation would be made by resolution after advertising in a local paper for two weeks and in the Scene in Baydon, followed by consideration of comments arising from them.

(xii) At the 20 April 2009 Parish Council meeting it was also confirmed that the allotments fit the definition of statutory allotments.

(xiii) Following the advertisements no-one attended a Parish Council meeting to voice their objections.

Click here to return to the main Minutes