When Brigg Town Council's property and services committee meets in the Angel Suite next Wednesday (7.45pm) a review will be made of the waiting list for allotments.
Councillors will be asked to consider whether:
1) The list should now be closed to applicants who live outside the parish.
2) Applicants who are already on the waiting list but live outside Brigg should be removed from the list, and advised to contact their own Parish Council.
The Town Council oversees allotments off Grammar School Road and Redcombe Lane/Atherton Way. They are proving very popular indeed, in line with the national trend for people to grow their own food and eat more healthily.
Clearly, demand is exceeding supply in terms of our allotments, prompting the Town Council's review of the situation.
Food for thought ahead of Wednesday's meeting.
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8 comments:
The Brigg TC needs to define exactly what 'parish' and Brigg boundaries are.
As discussed in previous blogs, parts of Brigg are within the boundary of Wrawby parish, but such residents pay their precept to Brigg TC.
Indeed, the conditions of '1' and '2' are contradictary.
If Brigg TC is going to consider exclusive 'Brigg' applications, then they should re-define the criteria - for example, post-code, and/or to whom applicants pay their precept.
One final comment: has anyone established in which parish the allotments are situated?
Further to above....what exactly does the existing constitution say about users and ues of allotments?
Historical documents must already define some sort of membership criteria and code of conduct.
As such, as the controlling management, Brigg TC may not necessarily have the authority to change 'membership', if 'membership' is already formally defined in the constitution and use of such allotments.
Has Brigg TC considered extending allotments? How about the land near the railway station, or any similar plots about Brigg and district, for example?
History in Making:
While we're on the subject of horticulture.....the difference between a swede and a turnip....
Turnips have been a common and indigenous crop in the UK for hundreds of years. Let's call it an English turnip......but sometime in the late Middle Ages, another variety was imported from Sweden. One is a creamy white colour and the other variety is horange.
So swede and turnip are essentially the same veggie tuber...only a different variety and in-time their names have become interchangable.
Nigel - perhaps I can clarify some of the issues raised by Mr. Ken Harrison:
1) There is no need to establish which parish the allotments are located in - both allotment sites are in Brigg.
The sites are wholly owned and managed by Brigg Town Council, so there is no constitution to refer to; and, therefore, Brigg Town Council does have the absolute authority to determine such criteria.
I can also confirm that Brigg
Town Council has a close and satisfactory working relationship with its tenants.
2) Parts of Brigg are not in Wrawby or any other parish.
There are, indeed, properties on Western Avenue and Westrum Lane which can only be accessed via Brigg - but the current parish boundaries remain completely clear in defining their location as within the parishes of Wrawby (in North Lincolnshire) and Bigby (in West Lindsey).
Contrary to Mr. Harrison's opinion - their Precept is paid to those Parishes,and not to Brigg Town Council.
2. In previous years the allotments in Brigg were under-subscribed and plots were, therefore, let to applicants from outside the parish of Brigg rather than leave them to fallow, which would have placed a maintenance burden on the Parish Precept.
Over the last 3-4 years there has been a renewed interest in allotment gardening (not only locally but nationally) and the demand for allotments has dramatically increased.
The obligation for Brigg Town Council is to respond to the demand from residents of Brigg and, as such, residents of Brigg must and do take precedence on any waiting list.
This criteria is already set in Town Council policy - so there is no need for it to be re-defined !
3) There really is no need to complicate this issue!
The Property and Services Committee is simply being asked to consider:-
whether it is fair for the numerous applicants who reside outside of Brigg to have their hopes raised by remaining on, or being added to, a waiting list for an allotment plot in Brigg when (at the present time) they have very little chance of being allocated a plot.
that applicants from outside of Brigg should be referred to their own Town /Parish Councillors who may be unaware that there is a demand that they need to consider.
Jeanette Woollard
Clerk, Brigg Town Council
Points taken on board, Jeanette and I don't want to labour the issue, but your comments don't actually define whether the Brigg TC could consider 'parish', or Brigg 'town' boundary as a criterion for an allotment application.
Town boundaries may incorporate various parishes, or parts thereof.Likewise, Cities, such as Greater Manchester and Greater London can encompass parts of verious counties.
Therefore, a town boundary is not necessarily delineated by a the perimeter of a parish boundary. As you indicate, Western Ave and associated roads are in Wrawby parish. Consequently, if Brigg TC should restrict allotment applications to those residents who are within only Brigg (St John's) parish, then Western Ave et al residents (who may seem to believe they live in Brigg) will be excluded.
Surely, Brigg's town boundary is defined more than mere parish geography. To me, there is a anomaly if otherwise Brigg residents (residing within the urbanised perimeter of Brigg)are precluded from being acknowledged as Brigg residents purely on the grounds of having a dwelling in an alien parish and/or county.
Ken
In a final effort to clarify this point - The spending power of Brigg Town Council is limited to the benefit of its own residents i.e those who pay their Parish Precept to Brigg T.C; and this includes the management of its allotment sites.
The electoral boundary dictates which Town/Parish a resident will pay their council tax to, and should not be confused with the Parochial boundary linked to the church,
Brigg Town Council does not have the power to re-define its electoral boundary. However, you will be pleased to hear that Brigg Town Council agrees with you regarding those dwellings on Western Avenue, and on Westrum Lane, which are in different parishes to their neighbours living on the same street.
The Town Council has already asked North Lincoknshire Council to instigate a boundary review.
Jeanette Woollard
Clerk, Brigg T.C.
Thanks, Jeanette.
Obviously, the principles of this Allotment allocation issue go a little deeper than the basic problem.
It actually throws up a number of anomalies - from local voting rights for a certain limited number of residents to Brigg TC being deprived of some precepts, although such town residents use/benefit and are supported with/by Brigg facilities.
Obviously, the Westrum Lane area is further complicated by the government division of the North Lincs/Lincs.
Unless a town's automonous, urban boundary is clearly defined, anomalies will continue in such aspects as planning decisions, community alienation and even locally controlled housing/retail/industrial development........each of which is likely to be detrimental to the town.
....and finally, points to ponder...
We pay a stardard Council Tax to NLC.
I understand that Scunthorpe does not levy a precept.
Scunthorpe has about 550 allotments.
Council Tax rise is usually capped by the government.
Parish and town council precepots are not capped.
Are rural residents subsizing the allotments in Scunthorpe?
Are therefore, some residents in Brigg paying twice for allotments?
Since parish/town recepts are not capped, is NLC off-loading some non-statutary functions to local governing bodies to subsidize - ie public loos, recreational grounds, allotments???????
If so, it does appear to be unfair if such facilities in Scunny are being maintained by the fundamental Council Tax paid by all residents in NLC.
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