More than 100 new allotment plots up for grabs

Bristol City Council plans to create new allotments across three sites in the city

More than 100 new allotment plots are planned for Bristol to boost opportunities for gardening and growing food.

Bristol City Council is planning to invest £2.4m in creating the new plots at three sites across the city, with money coming from a charge on property developers.

In Lockleaze, between 35 and 60 new allotments willl be created at Dovercourt Road and Cotman Walk, with £168,700 funding the Bonnington Walk development.

In Hengrove Park, just over £1m will be spent on creating between 55 to 105 new plots.

Long waiting list

More than £1.14m from the Brislington Meadows development will also be spent on new allotments, although it is not yet clear where these will be located.

Councillors on the public health and communities policy committee approved the investment on Friday, 23 August.

Liberal Democrat Councillor Stephen Williams said: “The investment responds to the growing demand from Bristol residents for space in which to grow their own food and help contribute to a healthier and more equitable food system.

"We know there’s plenty of demand out there for allotment spaces and there are over 7,000 people waiting for an allotment at the moment.”

Councillors deferred a plan to hike rents

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, there are only around 4,200 existing allotment plots in Bristol, and the council is also planning to increase the rents for plot holders.

During the same committee meeting, councillors decided to defer a plan to hike the rents, after allotmenteers spoke out against the planned increase.

The money to create new allotments cannot be used on day-to-day maintenance, or preventing a rent hike.

This is because the law says the council must hold separate budgets for revenue, covering things like rents and the normal costs of running the service, and capitla spending, which means one-off spending for creating new plots and other infrastructure.