Tenancy and Rent
1. The Council shall let to the tenant an Allotment Garden situated at Wenslees, Darley Bridge (‘the Allotment Garden’).
2. The Council shall let the Allotment Garden to the tenant for a term of up to one year commencing on the date of this Agreement and terminating on the 6th day of April next and thereafter from year to year (7th April to 6th April) unless determined in accordance with the terms of this tenancy.
3. The tenant shall pay in advance a yearly rent of £ whether demanded or not which shall be paid in full on the 7th day of April every year.
4. The tenant shall inform the Council immediately of any change of address, contact details or status.
5. This tenancy is subject to this Agreement and to the Allotments Acts 1908 to 1950.
Use of Land
6. The tenant shall use the Allotment Garden primarily for the cultivation of fruit, vegetables and flowers for the use and consumption by them or their family.
7. The tenant shall not sell or undertake a business in respect of the cultivation and production of fruit, vegetables and flowers in the Allotment Garden.
8. The tenant shall keep the Allotment Garden in Cultivation to the reasonable satisfaction of the Council and must keep weeds under control and maintain the soil in a healthy state. Cultivation shall mean weed vegetation reasonably under control and growing fruit, flowers or vegetables, and/or growing green manure crops. The tenant shall keep any paths therein or abutting thereon reasonably free from weeds.
Nuisance
9. The tenant shall not cause or admit any nuisance or annoyance to the owners or occupiers of land adjoining the Allotment Garden or to obstruct or encroach on any path or roadway set out by the Council for the use of the allotment gardens. The tenant shall ensure any access roads and all paths are kept free of obstructions and hazards.
10. All fruit trees must be on dwarf rootstock and may be grown to a maximum height of 3 metres with all tree branches to remain within the boundary of the Allotment Garden. Fruit trees should not obstruct any pathways, cause shading or root spread to neighbouring plots.
Keeping of Animals
11. The tenant shall not keep livestock or poultry in the Allotment Garden other than of hens or rabbits. Such livestock or poultry shall not be kept for a business or trade.
12. The tenant shall ensure that any hens or rabbits kept on the Allotment Garden are well cared for and housed in appropriate humane conditions. Adequate fencing shall be provided and maintained to ensure that the hens or rabbits cannot roam beyond the confines of the Allotment Garden. Provision must also be made for ensuring their welfare at all times, including extreme weather events such as flooding, gales and very low temperatures. In particular tenants with livestock must respond whenever there is a flood warning concerning the River Derwent in the vicinity to ensure the safety of their livestock.
13. Bees may be kept on the Allotment Garden but the Council must first be satisfied that the tenant or beekeeper is suitably qualified to care properly for them and that the following conditions are satisfied:
- the beekeeper shall have undertaken a recognised course covering both theoretical and practical training, to a good level of competence;
- the beekeeper must be a full member of a recognised beekeeping association with full insurance against third party damages, and
- any bees brought onto the allotment shall be of good temperament and kept that way.
14. The tenant shall inform the Council of any livestock, poultry or bees which they keep on the Allotment Garden and also of any significant changes to the arrangements for keeping them.
15. The tenant shall ensure that any dog brought onto the Allotment Garden is kept securely within the Allotment Garden and under control at all times.
Restriction of Assignment
16. The tenant shall not underlet, assign or part with possession of the Allotment Garden or any part of it without the written consent of the Council.
Buildings
17. The tenant shall not erect any shed, greenhouse, polytunnel or other building on the Allotment Garden without first obtaining the Council’s written consent.
Fences and Hedges
18. The tenant shall maintain and keep in repair any fences and gates forming part of the Allotment Garden and keep any hedges properly cut and trimmed.
19. The tenant shall not use barbed or razor wire for any purpose on the Allotment Garden.
Bonfires
20. Bonfires shall not be lit during July and August. Bonfires shall only be of a small size, contained (within a suitable metal incinerator or brazier), constantly attended and damped down when finished. No material other than dry organic material produced on the Allotment Garden is to be burnt on site.
21. Barbecues are only permitted if no nuisance is caused to nearby tenants and residents and must not be left unattended.
Rubbish
22. The tenant shall not deposit, or allow others to deposit, on the Allotment Garden any refuse/rubbish or any decaying matter except manure and compost in such quantities as may reasonably be used for cultivation.
Safety
23. The tenant shall be responsible for ensuring that any person present in the Allotment Garden with or without the tenant’s permission does not suffer personal injury or damage to their property. If the tenant becomes aware of a safety matter which is beyond their control, they should report the matter to the Council.
Inspection
24. The tenant shall permit an inspection of the Allotment Garden at all reasonable times by the Council’s employees or agents.
Parking
25. The tenant shall ensure that any vehicle brought to the vicinity of the allotment field shall be parked considerately and does not obstruct the roadway or any adjacent entrances or cause any damage to verges or other areas. A parking area is available for tenants’ use at the eastern end of the allotment field and should be used if available.
Termination of Tenancy
26. The tenancy may be terminated by the Council serving on the tenant not less than twelve months written notice to quit expiring on or before the 6th day of April or after the 29th day of September in any year.
27. If the tenant shall have been in breach of any of the foregoing clauses, the Council shall be entitled to issue a one month notice to comply. If the tenant does not comply by the end of this notice period, the Council will serve a one month notice to terminate. Such termination shall be without prejudice to any right of the Council to claim damages for any such breach or to recover any rent already due before the time of such re-entry but remaining unpaid.
28. The termination of the tenancy by the Council in accordance with Clause 27 or after re-entry by the Council in pursuance of its statutory rights shall not prejudice the tenant’s statutory rights to compensation.
29. The tenancy may be terminated by the tenant by serving on the Council not less than one month’s written notice to quit.
30. On the termination of the tenancy the tenant shall remove any shed, greenhouse, polytunnel or other building or structure erected in the Allotment Garden unless the Council agrees otherwise which shall be confirmed in writing to the tenant. If the outgoing tenant neither disposes of nor removes such structures, then an incoming tenant may either enter into possession of these structures without payment or cause them to be dismantled and removed and to charge the outgoing tenant the cost of these works.
31. The tenancy shall determine on the 6th day of April next after the death of the tenant.
Notices
32. Any notice required to be given to the tenant by the Council may be signed on behalf of the Council and may be served on the tenant either personally or by leaving it at their last known place of abode or by posting it to their last known place of abode.
33. Any notice required to be given by the tenant to the Council shall be sufficiently given if signed by the tenant and sent in a pre-paid envelope to the Clerk of the Council at:
Chalet, Holt Road, Hackney, Matlock, DE4 3QD.
March 2021