Parties Clash over Allotment Sell-Off
PAUL MCLAUGHLIN
Relations between the Green-led Hastings Borough Council and the local Labour MP are becoming more fractious. Tensions flared up recently when Helena Dollimore accused the Council of being “heavy-handed” in its approach to the Selkie, a seafood bar located on Bottle Alley. The bar was refused permission to use beach seating by the Foreshore Trust, the charitable organisation that manages the Hastings and St Leonards foreshore on behalf of the Council – a decision ridiculed by the MP.
The latest rumpus between the two sides is over alleged Government plans to sell off allotment plots. Local Greens saw red—or perhaps an eco-friendly muted, earthy tone – at the recent disclosure that Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, had given permission for eight local councils across the country to sell off allotments they hold when this “offers value for money”. One of those sold was the Ravenscroft Allotments in West Sussex, where a developer has plans to build new homes on the site.
The Green Party launched a Facebook campaign accusing Labour of betraying communities and vowing “never to sell off our town’s allotments.” Jo Walker, the lead Councillor for Environment and Neighbourhood Wellbeing, vowed to “look at options to provide more allotments, not less, and encourage community growing projects across the town to give as many people as possible land-based experiences, as well as increase our biodiversity.”
Council Leader Glenn Haffenden waded in, calling on Labour to “fund our councils, not strip us of our vital assets to plug their funding gaps. Hastings deserves better and we will keep standing up for what our town needs.”
Labour dismissed the claims as being deliberately “misleading” and designed to stir up anger and outrage among allotment holders. Councils have been able to sell assets since 2016 but should only do so where “it is clearly necessary and offers value for money.”
The Government has not made any changes to the legal status of allotments, which are covered by the 1908 Smallholding and Allotment Act section 32 with money raised having to go into new or improved allotments. If Councils do want to dispose of sites, they must go through a statutory process where there is a presumption against a sale if there are local objections.
The National Allotments Society has reported that there were no objections to the sale of any of the eight allotments, adding that some of the sites were given better allotment land to replace them, with one increasing from 40 to 60+ plots when it was relocated, whilst the other was for a single allotment that was not in use.
The rumpus between Labour and the Greens is becoming thornier than an overgrown bramble with the rows getting hotter than a summer compost heap.
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