Running an allotment

Tenancy agreement

You will need to sign a tenancy agreement when renting an allotment as you are taking on responsibility for a piece of land. The allotment provider must ensure that you will manage the land appropriately and ensure that it is in a suitable state to rent out again should you decide to terminate the agreement.

As no two-allotment sites are identical, tenancy agreements can vary considerably between providers. However there are some issues that must be covered by law, such as:

• Rent including how much you must pay, what it covers, when it must be paid, who collects it, how the rent is calculated and what happens in the case of arrears.
• Prevention of nuisance and annoyance.
• The use of barbed wire.
• Prohibition of sub-letting to other people by the plotholder.
• Determination of tenancy and notices to quit.
• Compensation.
• Observance of conditions of lease.
• Prohibition of trade or business.
• Erection of sheds, greenhouses and other structures.
• Keeping of livestock including bees.

Additional items and issues may be mentioned in the tenancy agreement depending on local circumstances and by-laws in operation.

Allotment plots are normally leased for one year, although this can be renewed indefinitely.

Other allotment rules

Apart from signing a tenancy agreement, many allotment sites have additional rules, apart from the tenancy agreement. These are to ensure that the site is run well on a day-to-day basis, and a copy of them should be given to the plotholder at the start of the tenancy. Some allotment sites include additional rules within the tenancy agreement itself.

Your responsibilities

You should read and understand the responsibilities in your tenancy agreement, and stick to the tenancy conditions. This is not just to protect your own tenancy, but also to ensure that the site as a whole is not brought into disrepute.