It depends if the allotment is statutory or temporary.
If an authority wishes to sell a statutory allotment site it must have the
consent of the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.
The Secretary of State will first want to be satisfied of certain
conditions as follows:
• The allotment is either not necessary and is surplus to
requirements
• The council will give displaced plotholders adequate
alternative sites, unless this is not necessary or is not practicable
• The council has taken the number of people on the waiting list
into account; and
• The council has actively promoted and publicised the
availability of allotment sites and has consulted the NSALG
Government guidance also requires allotment authorities to consult with
plot holders before they apply for disposal consent. If the application
goes ahead, it will be dealt with by the National and West Midlands
Planning Casework Team at GOWM. Local authorities have been advised of the
criteria for assessment in a letter to Chief Executives dated 27 February
2002 – see below for details.
If the application is successful, and allotment holders are displaced, the
allotment authority is expected to provide one or more suitable alternative
sites which should not normally be more than three-quarters of a mile from
the centre of demand. They must be suitable for spade cultivation.
If an allotment authority ends a tenancy, the plot holder is entitled to
compensation for:
• Crops growing on the land in the ordinary course of
cultivation
• Manure applied to the land; and
• Up to one year’s rent
The Secretary of State’s consent is not required for the disposal of
non-statutory allotment sites, but the allotment authority will usually be
required to give plot holders 12 months notice to quit before the land can
be used for any other purpose.
