Waiting list Information
Thank you for contacting the Whitemoor Garden Holders Association. Your details have now been entered onto the waiting list for an allotment tenancy.
You will usually be contacted by telephone or email when there is an allotment available to offer to you. Please make sure that you keep us updated if your main contact details change. You can inspect the notice board by the shop each Saturday morning to see where you are on the list.
Being offered an allotment
It is not easy to predict how long you will be on the waiting list before being offered an allotment, as allotments can only be offered as and when they become vacant. It may be at least 12 months before an allotment is available to offer. The condition of the allotment will depend on how long the allotment has been vacant and how active the previous tenant had been.
If more than one allotment is vacant at the time you come to view, you may be offered a choice. It is much more likely that only one allotment will be available.
As there are many people on the waiting list, we will ask you to make a decision if you want to take on the allotment fairly quickly.
If you do not want to take on the allotment you are offered, or if you are not ready to take on an allotment at the time you are contacted, you will be given first refusal on the next available allotment. If, however, you also reject this second offer, then your name will be moved to the bottom of the waiting list again.
Costs
When you accept an allotment, you will be asked to pay the basic ground rent and the water charges for the year. You will also be required to give a £10 deposit for a security key for the outer gates of the allotment site. If you need to know how much the ground rent and water charges will be, please ask at the time you are contacted to view an allotment or when you go to view, as these are calculated by the size of the allotment offered.
Rents and water charges become due on 1st October and must be paid by the end of October. The full rent for the year will be charged if you accept an allotment after September (until February). Water charges are not discounted for part years as the water is only supplied during the summer months.
You will need to supply your own tools and equipment for working on the allotment. You may want to research the kind of equipment you will want and the associated cost before you take on an allotment.
Allotment size
The allotments at Whitemoor are on average 600 square yards. Due to demand we have split several allotments into 2 or even 4
Subletting part of an allotment is not permitted, although you may enter into an unofficial arrangement with a friend or relative if you feel this is too large for you to realistically manage, or you can go for one of the “split plots”. You may also ask for a joint tenancy of one allotment with a person who wishes to share the allotment with you.
There are allotment that are split into 3 smaller plots, and one allotment that is split into 4 smaller plots. You may ask to be considered for one of these smaller plots as they become available. We have recently (spring 2011) arranged for more gardens to be split into 2
Accepting an Allotment
When you accept an allotment, you will be asked to sign a tenancy agreement in which will be laid out various rules that you will be required to abide by. If you would like to see a copy of the current tenancy agreement before you are offered an allotment, please contact us.
Work Commitment required
It is impossible to advise how much time will be required to maintain and cultivate an allotment. Opinions will vary on how much time is required, although some time and labour will be required especially whilst establishing produce on a new allotment. If your time will be at a premium then you should try to plan ahead to create a relatively easy allotment to maintain.
Further Information
The Association holds an open day and produce show every year. You are welcome to attend if you would like to look around the site and talk to the tenants who are hosting an open garden on these days.
There are many sources of information available about the practicalities of cultivating and managing an allotment including the internet and the gardening section of your local library.
The allotment site also has a website at http://www.whitemoorallotments.btck.co.uk.
Our Secretary’s email address is in the contact details.
If you decide you no longer wish to be considered for an allotment, please contact us to let us know you wish to be removed from the list.
Last updated 20/11/11