Old Park Farm Garden Holders Association

PLEASE PRINT YOUR OWN COPY OF THIS ARTICLE IF YOU REQUIRE IT FOR THE AGM

OLD PARK FARM ALLOTMENTS COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY

DRAFT :  MINUTES OF THE EXTRAORDINARY MEETING HELD ON 3rd SEPTEMBER 2016

Present: Steve & Diane Yorke, David & Becky Kirkham, Mary Corbett, Diane Gavagan, Steve Porter & Maria Bredice,  Kay Graham & Peter Groves, Tom & Sarah Hutchinson, Ian Mathews & Martin Spilsbury. Shaun Taylor, Adam Wheat, Paul & Kay Barron. John Gallagher, Ronnie Gayle. Paul Hibbs, Osmond Okungbowa. Steve & Jackie Medcalf, Steve Williams. Plus some friends and families with apologies to anyone i have missed off.

The Chairman, Steve Yorke, welcomed everyone and thanked them for their attendance at this interim meeting, stating that despite a poor start due to the early season weather the year had been good on the whole. However we have a few gardens that are not doing so well and they would be getting a letter from the secretary, Jackie, very soon.

Steve went on to then explain the concerns we have about the number of fires we are having on the allotments. There had been some complaints over the last 18 months or so from members of the public. We had experienced incidents of gardeners burning things that should not be put on bonfires and which were causing too much smoke and smells.  We were having repeated problems with people misusing communal bonfires by putting the wrong and sometimes dangerous substances on them.  The committee were suggesting that we banned the use of brazier fires and just restricted all fires to burning Sundays and that by raising this now we were seeking a consensus from those present. There was an interruption from John Gallagher who accused another gardener of causing problems with his stove fires which caused smoke and then went on to accuse Steve Williams in particular of instigating this proposal out of self interest alone. Unfortunately he chose to conduct his arguments in a disruptive manner and in a way which was totally unacceptable in a meeting. His remarks were very personal designed to cause serious offence to  Steve.  The Chairman, the Secretary and others from the floor all objected to the language and tone he used and made it clear his attitude and language were unacceptable and offensive.

The secretary subsequently suggested that the atmosphere was not conducive to a reasonable discussion and that the proposal and any decision should be postponed to the new year. The Chairman therefore postponed the discussion to the AGM in March.

Jackie then explained the problems with water being left on on after gardeners had left the allotments leaving hosepipes running. This was an ongoing problem and there had been occurrences each season. Everyone understands that people make mistakes but if it’s an action that is reoccurring then we need to do something about it. However, there is no written guidance as to what action to take and is basically left to the discretion of the secretary. The tenancy agreement has stated that hose pipes should not be left attached to the water taps and the water taps should be turned off after use and water should not be running if the gardener is not present on the garden, however there is no sanction when this occurs. Hence repeated transgressions. Jackie wanted to ensure fairness and therefore wanted a policy to deal with such incidents.

Proposal was.

1st occurrence. The gardener is informed if not already aware and a verbal warning is given. This is kept as a written record by the secretary.

2nd occurrence. The gardener is issued a written warning and a record of this is kept by the secretary.

3rd occurrence. The gardener will be written to and warned that any further occurrence that season could lead to the termination of the tenancy agreement and a fine would be imposed.

The floor was in agreement and the question of how much that fine would be was left to the floor. The amount agreed on was £30 which was accepted by the majority in attendance.

The warnings would not be carried over to another season.

The new rent bill was explained and why the bill had increased and why it would do so again next year on October 1st 2017. A decision would be made on exactly how much that would be during 2016 this would be after we had received final confirmation from the council and had taken into account where the new lease agreement is in its completion.

The meeting closed at 13.30pm and the BBQ started.

As an extra note after the meeting several complaints were made as to the attitude and language used in the meeting by JG. After a discussion between the secretary and chairman a formal warning letter was sent to JG, he did not accept this and subsequently removed himself from the gardens.