Havant Borough Council has 12 allotment sites, with a total of 770 plots, that are managed by partner Norse South East (NSE).
The provision of allotments by local authorities is an important part of offering recreational facilities to residents. Allotments can provide many things to different people including an opportunity for flat tenants to have a garden or people with gardens to extend their growing possibilities. They can also offer physical exercise outdoors, growing fresh vegetables, social interaction, plant and knowledge sharing.
Waiting times for allotments will vary, you should expect to wait a minimum of at least 12 months, and possibly up to five and a half years for a plot to be allocated. If you would like to be added to the waiting list for allotments, please contact Norse South East directly using the details below.
Please contact NSE with any questions or enquiries, via email on techsupportteam@norsesoutheast.co.uk
It is impossible to give accurate waiting times, as this depends on the rate of turnover at the site you have applied for.
You should expect to wait a minimum of eighteen months and possibly up to three and a half years.
Should your contact details change whilst you are on the waiting list do update us.
The time needed depends on the size of the plot and how intensively you want to garden. For an average 126 m² plot, you should expect to spend four to five hours per week in the summer months and one to two hours per week in the winter. Many people find they spend considerably longer on their plots.
The fees and charges are set by Havant Borough Council and are released at the beginning of each financial year.
Residents within Havant Borough - 58 pence per square metre.
For residents outside of Havant Borough - £1.15 per square metre.
The annual cost is based on the allotment size.
The letting year of the tenancy runs from 1 April – 31 March each year. A pro rata invoice will be issued depending on when the allotment acceptance date.
Example of annual costs for residents of Havant Borough
0.58p x 126 sqm = £73.08 0.58p x 75 sqm = £43.50
Example of annual costs for non-residents
£1.15 x 110 sqm £126.50 £1.15 x 60 sqm = £69.00
When you reach the top of the waiting list you will be contacted to confirm your interest before offering you a plot in the area in which you applied for.
When a vacant plot is offered you will be given the opportunity to view the plot prior to accepting.
If your circumstances have changed and you no longer want an allotment, please let us know so we can remove you from the waiting list.
If you are offered a plot and having viewed it, decide to decline the offer, you will have the option of being placed back at the bottom of the waiting list.
The plot is ready for you to begin working on from the date of signing and returning the Tenancy Agreement.
When signing the Tenancy Agreement, please check all the information is correct and ensure all fields are completed.
Once the signed Tenancy Agreement has been received, it will be processed and accounts will raise an invoice for the relevant amount. (Depending on what time of year the plot is accepted a pro rata invoice is raised before you receive the full annual invoice. The tenancy year runs from 1st April to 31st March).
Invoices are sent via email where possible (Please allow 14 working days).
Please wait until an invoice is received before attempting to make payment for plots.
The tidiness of the allotment is part of effective plot management and cultivation. Should this not be maintained, it can have a detrimental effect on not only your plot, but the plots of others.
Regular plot inspections take place and issues raised are reported to the allotment officer to act upon.
Following a failed inspection, a 21-day inspection notice is issued. This means that you will have 21 days from the date of the notice to bring your plot to the standard required. A further inspection will then be carried out.
Contact the allotments officer via email techsupportteam@norsesoutheast.co.uk
or call Customer Services on 02392 446019. You will be supplied with a Voluntary Termination of Allotment Tenancy Agreement form to complete and return. A termination date will be agreed and any outstanding balances settled. Please note that you will need to ensure that you remove all refuse, structures and belongings from the plot and leave it clear and ready for a new tenant. Additional charges may be applied if any clearance is required after you have vacated the plot.
Cultivated is defined as for the production of crops and must be a minimum of 75% of each individual plot(s).
Full cultivation is considered to mean at least one of the following:
Crops are defined as vegetables and fruit. An allotment plot is wholly or mainly for the production of vegetables and fruit crops for consumption by the Tenant or his or her family or friends and not for profit.
Debris is defined as fly tipping, rubbish, non-organic materials.
Council permission is required prior to erecting any structure on an allotment plot. A request form will be included in your pack when you take on a Tenancy.
Any structure must be sited entirely within the boundary of the plot. It must not cause an obstruction to adjacent plots, for example by being placed too close to dividing paths or to boundary fences and hedges, where access will be needed for maintenance.
ALL STRUCTURES
If any structure is constructed without permission the Council shall be entitled to instruct the tenant to remove that structure. Failure by the tenant to remove the structure when instructed to do so, will result in the Council removing the structure at a cost recharged to the tenant. Decisions as to what shall constitute a structure shall be at the absolute discretion of the Council or the appointed ‘Agent’. Structures must not have permanent foundations. Plot numbers must be displayed on structures.
SHEDS
Maximum dimensions 8ft x 6ft x 7ft 6’’ to peak of apex. (2.44 x 1.83 x 2.3m) The Tenant shall keep any Allotment Garden shed weather preserved and in good repair and condition, to the satisfaction of the Council.
GREENHOUSES
Maximum dimensions 8ft x 6ft x 7ft 6’’ to peak of apex. (2.44 x 1.83 x 2.3m)
FRUIT CAGES/COLD FRAMES
Dimensions must be appropriate to the size of the plot, be suitably robust, yet able to be easily dismantled and as such be regarded as a temporary structure.
POLYTUNNELS
Polytunnels are not permitted on allotment sites.
COMPOSTING
Compost bins must be used. No lose piles of compost should be on any allotment plot.
Bonfires are not the most environmentally friendly way of getting rid of rubbish. There is no doubt that bonfires cause air pollution; burning garden waste will produce smoke especially if it is damp and smouldering rather than dry and blazing, causing a nuisance to adjacent properties.
The Environmental Protection Act 1990 states that it is an offence to cause a statutory nuisance. This includes smoke, fumes or gases “emitted from premises so as to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance” and can include nuisance created by bonfires.
Under the Highways (Amendment) Act 1986, anyone lighting a fire and allowing smoke to drift across a road faces a fine if it endangers traffic.
Most garden and allotment waste, including cardboard and paper can be recycled into compost. Rather than burning garden and allotment waste a compost bin will produce a useful soil conditioner, saving money on commercial products. Rubbish that is unsuitable for composting can be disposed of at the Household Waste Recycling Centres located at:
Darnel Road Waterlooville PO7 7TX
Fishery Lane Hayling Island PO11 9NR
Harts Farm Way Havant PO9 1HS
Follow the link to book an appointment: https://www.hants.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling/recyclingcentres
IF YOU DO HAVE A BONFIRE…
Fly tipping is anti-social and illegal and will be fully investigated. Any tenant found to be fly tipping on an allotment site will be in breach of their tenancy agreement and could have their tenancy terminated.
If you are planning to have a structure, fertiliser or other materials delivered to the allotment site, you must contact the allotments office in advance for approval.
Report it to the police by phoning 101 or report online. It is important to make the police aware of every incident in order that they can build an intelligence picture and deploy resources accordingly.
We advise that all equipment is kept securely and out of site.
Gates must be kept secure at all times to prevent unauthorised access to the allotment sites.
For any further enquiries please contact Customer Services on 02392 446019 or email techsupportteam@norsesoutheast.co.uk