How long did you wait for yours?

[JMCKG]

Just under 5 years. We know have a waiting list of 99, there are 29 plots on site.

[Jay-ell]

When I lived in Walthamstow there was one list for all the sites in the borough. I got a number of "it's going to be ages are you sure you still want one" and five years later I got allocated a half plot right at the back of a large allotment site.

A few months later I came to the decision to relocate back up to Newcastle - had the plot just long enough to clear up the weeds, dig out all the polyester carpets which had 2 inches of accumulated soil on them, dig out the buried shopping trolley (!?), lay out the beds, dig in loads of compost, and make a large manure pile.

When I decided to move back I notified the allotments officer that I no longer needed it and it was available immediately for someone else. 10 months later the council called me up to inform me that it wasn't up to standard and was "a bit weedy"

My allotment up here was sorted out before I moved back up as it's a small plot on private land and the person who had it was giving it up - so no waiting list.

[veggiechicken]

Good luck DD, hope they can find you a corner to call your own

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

^ Probably to stand in facing the fence

[daviddevantnhisspiritwife]

I know how frustrating it must be seeing untended plots on sites with long waiting lists. I don't know what the scenario is on this site, it's fairly small (< 20 plots). A few are shared plots, but from what I can gather it's well maintained at present.

[Nicola.P]

Just over 6yrs. Went on the waiting list Nov 2008. Got my little plot Jan this year.

[greenishfing]

I know how frustrating it must be seeing untended plots on sites with long waiting lists. I don't know what the scenario is on this site, it's fairly small (< 20 plots). A few are shared plots, but from what I can gather it's well maintained at present.

I think it is appalling that plots are allowed to stand empty and weed-infested while waiting lists grow. In the few years we've had our allotments I've seen all kinds of bad management.....incompetent council allotment officers who took months to re-let and didn't evict people who were clearly never going to grow anything, on-site allotment officers who ignored waiting lists and gave allotments to friends etc.

I hope your future site is better than ours has been.

[Jay-ell]

Here here -after the work I had put in I thought wel at least the next tenant will get a clear plot with a few crops growing and was gutted that an incompetent official let it become a weedy neglected plot once more.

[sparrow100]

To be fair to committees, sometimes tenants aren't aware of what is going on behind the scenes to either get the plot vacated or find out what is going on with the tenant of what might look like a neglected plot and discuss with them whether they will be able to keep it. It takes 3 formal stages for our committee to terminate a tenancy and that can take about 4 months, but people are usually given a second chance.

I appreciate there are lots of horror stories about untended plots out there though. The ones in my borough tend to be the council-run ones where the maintenance/management has been outsourced to a gardening company. The self-managed ones are generally much better.

[Noosner]

We waited 8 years. There are said to be 180 people on the list now, though with such long waiting times I imagine some of those have moved away/died/given up. At least 30% of our plots are left untended though... don't get me started!

Hope you find a nice plot, DD.

[Guest]

Where I used to live an association formed and it took them three years to get allotments going and it ended up as privately run. Like most things people only joined once it was all up and running.

[KevinM67]

Wow - I didn't realise how lucky I was reading through this thread.

We moved into our current house on the Friday, and on the Saturday morning I was talking a walk around the area and found allotments 5 mins away.
Walked up to the cabin, enquired about availability and was taken to this overgrown jungle. Asked if I wanted it, and £20 later bob's your aunty - it was mine.

My other half, who was 7 months pregnant at the time was so overjoyed to find out that I had found a 'hobby' that would require me being out the house at any available opportunity - NOT !!!.

She's come round to it now (after 6 years).

[alldigging]

If there's huge waiting lists you need a campaign to ask the council to find more land.

[KevinM67]

If there's huge waiting lists you need a campaign to ask the council to find more land.

Unfortunately, with the current political climate, the cuts to Local Government funding and the push for 'more' housing - I presume that allotments may be well down the list of council priorities when it comes to utilising unused land.

[Alison]

Unfortunately, with the current political climate, the cuts to Local Government funding and the push for 'more' housing - I presume that allotments may be well down the list of council priorities when it comes to utilising unused land.

When I challenged our council they asked me which other service I wanted them to cut, not really the point but I do kind of understand.