16/01/2024
You still have this week to submit your views, this consultation closes next Monday 22nd! https://www.ask.bristol.gov.uk/bristol-allotment
Our statement against the proposed changes is as follows:
Easton Community Garden was founded on derelict land in 2001, and has been serving the community on a completely voluntary basis ever since. It is a space where anyone is welcome to come along and learn about gardening and get involved. We are already a solution to the long waiting lists of allotments problem, as people don't have to wait to access a space such as ours - they can just come along and get growing. We therefore don’t believe that we should have our rent increased to the extent proposed, as we are three plots put together but many more people would benefit from our space being accessible than they otherwise would from a singular plot. There should be a discount offered for community gardens, as we are exemplary in providing a wider access to growing and learning about growing for the community. The consultation fails to account for spaces such as ours, as we are not a private allotment, but rather a set of three communal plots which are a tremendous asset to the local community. We help to reduce social isolation, increase education on growing and horticultural and permaculture practices, as well as tackle food insecurity and access to growing food.
We've collaborated with projects such as Hip Hop Gardens (based at Rose Green Centre opposite us) and the Black Joy Trail last year, hosting their young gardeners to come together and find the joy and sense of community in our space. We are a space not only to grow food, but in which to reconnect with nature and find joy in the mindful act of gardening. We have also hosted two successful fundraisers for the garden at The Volunteer last year, held an open day at the Get Growing Trail, and hosted a Seed Swap with Felix Rd Adventure playground, teaching children and their families how to grow seeds for small plants and flowers in small spaces or how to make the best of windowsills for those without gardens. It is crucial that those without gardens or access to private allotments are still able to access spaces such as ours. Everyone can benefit from our knowledge of gardening, where people from marginalised backgrounds would otherwise continue to be unable to access growing food and the well-being benefits of gardening.
With regards to the reduction or removal of large trees and the proposed leaves on trees, we need to stress that our trees are established, useful to to wildlife, the rain and carbon cycle, as well as for food. Our trees are productive and proportionate to the site, and we have educational and health benefits to offer to our community and to wildlife corridors, beneficial pollinators, and of course frogs. We are always reviewing which trees are diseased or need to be cut back or completely removed, as we have lots of us keeping a careful eye on our plants and how to take best care of them. Therefore it does not seem at all necessary to apply a 'one size fits all' approach to allotment plots, and to put all of this pressure on an allotment officer to police trees, when we are already doing this work continually throughout the year, with our multiple dedicated volunteers.
We are always reusing and recycling resources on-site too, maintaining our paths with wood-chip and keeping our beds tidy, as more people benefit from the productivity of our site than just a couple of people. We are much more likely to keep on top of this and not leave our plot 'unattended' unlike with plots managed by only a couple of individuals. We are always learning and teaching each other about permaculture and organic principles of gardening. Our combined experience of gardening leaves us extremely disappointed in this consultation, and how little the proposed rules seem to reflect knowledge and basic understanding of gardening and horticulture.
The space would be impacted extremely negatively by the new rules that go against what we stand for as a permaculture garden. Please do better to improve the rules to lift up the great community projects already thriving in our city, such as ours at Easton Community Garden. The consultation and the Allotments team would do well to listen to those putting in the work to make Bristol's green spaces more biodiverse and more accessible, rather than dampen our efforts and make our communal green spaces harder to manage and welcome people to grow food - which is precisely the opposite intention of Bristol City Council as a leading green city.
Bristol City Council’s Parks Service manages 227 hectares of food growing land (much of which is protected under the Allotment Act). Within this land, the council manages over 4,000 allotment plots, with an additional 1,500 plots managed by five Allotment Associations
