Old Park Farm Garden Holders Association

First of all, it is the association (all of its members) who are responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of all our communal areas. It is therefore important if you see something that could be a hazard and can do something about it yourself safely, then you should. It is your responsibility to report any concerns to the Secretary or Chairman or any other member of the committee. But the health and safety of yourself and any other visitors to your allotment is your responsibility, we can only advise.  If though a tenant is actively ignoring a Health and Safety breach or actively involved in making one then there will be no hesitation by the Committee of this Association to withdraw the tenancy from the tenant.

The following points are designed to be guidelines and are not policy, however, please bear in mind the previous statement.

1. If possible tell someone you are going to the allotment and carry a mobile phone with you in case you have an accident. The nearest postcode is NG8 4LJ.  The address is … Old Coach Road, OFF GLAISDALE DRIVE, Bilborough.
2. It’s not advisable to lock your garden gate from the inside. If you fall or become ill how will people get to you?  Do not put barbed wire on top of your gate/fence.
3. Wear suitable protective equipment including safety boots and gloves when necessary and particularly when using tools or other equipment.
4. The water on site is from the mains but it is not intended as drinking water be aware of possible contamination from the environment.  Do not store drinking water on site for more than a couple of days.
5. Please only use pesticides/chemicals licensed for domestic use and keep garden chemicals safely, labelled and away from drinking water.
6. Never store hazardous materials on your garden. Bringing hazardous materials on to your plot will be a breach of your tenancy. ( PLEASE SEE NOTE BELOW) This includes : asbestos-containing materials, car tyres, chemicals not for use on your garden, car parts, oils and anything that could not be safely disposed of at a recycling centre or in a skip. Asbestos has been used profusely in allotments over the years, learn to recognise it. If you find some put it to one side and inform the  Secretary or Chairman who will arrange for its removal. Do not break it up. Information on how to move and manage asbestos can be found on the HSE’s website by searching ‘HSE Asbestos Essentials’
7. Glass is also a problem so wear gloves if you are using your hands to move soil. Again collect it and keep it separately.
8. Beware of Rats. Do not leave uncovered bird seed in your shed. Do not bring soft furnishings onto your garden, rats will nest in it. Use hand wash or antibacterial hand rub and again wear gloves.
9. Remove dangerous branches from trees on your garden. Contact the Secretary or Chairman if you think a tree is dangerous.
10. Keep weeds and brambles to a minimum. Beware of tripping hazards with briars. Don’t let weeds hide dangers. Overgrown gardens are not part of your tenancy agreement.
11. Good housekeeping is essential. Put your tools away, clean them after use do not leave hoses etc uncurled. Look at your garden before you leave and make sure nothing will trip you up when you next attend.
12. Where possible cover water butts and be aware of the dangers of stagnant or contained water.
13. Under no circumstances let children be unsupervised on your garden.
14. You are responsible for the buildings on your garden, inherited or not. Do not let a building become dangerous if you think it is please ask for advice.
15. Finally please drive slowly throughout these gardens. A speed limit of 10 miles per hour applies to the whole site.

We want you to enjoy your garden but enjoy it safely. Just double check and be aware that accidents can happen to anyone and illnesses can come on suddenly. It is very easy to be the only one on these gardens so you need to be ready for emergencies.

The first draft of this Health and Safety Guidance was approved at a committee meeting on 24th February  2018. It is intended to be adopted as policy later when a new tenancy agreement is agreed along with a new constitution.  At that point, those wilfully breaching point 6 will lose their tenancy.

This document has been put together in consultation with the City Councils Allotment service.

Jackie Medcalf
Secretary.

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At the Annual General Meeting held on Sunday 19th March it was agreed that the only fires allowed on the allotments would be those set on burning Sundays.

The practice of small brazier fires or similar allowed to burn at any time will now cease. This is being done to reduce the risk of complaints and air pollution.

Please take your responsibilities seriously where fires are concerned. Wherever possible compost or leave waste to rot naturally in your garden, or take it off site. Before you light a fire check on wind direction, is the smoke likely to cause a problem, are there already fires causing smoke on site,  if so don’t light yours.  Once a fire is burning DO NOT add wet materials to it as this is the greatest cause of smoke generation.

Communal fires will be provided but only if people stop abusing them. Over the last 3 or 4 months we have had plastics, aerosol containers, carpet tiles, wheelbarrow loads of soil and vegetable waste, insulating material and sometime during this last week a significant amount of carpet, including some that obviously had not been used on a garden put on communal fires. This incident is particularly galling after the number of skips we have had over the last year. I am prepared to issue formal warnings of risk of loss of tenancy to anyone putting us at risk of prosecution and more importantly putting those few who set these bonfires alight in risk of injury or health problems by not following guidelines and common sense.

The committee will reserve the right to announce a change in burning sunday times if there has been consecutively bad weather on previous burning sundays.

As a timely illustration of the problems fires cause us,  after the meeting on Sunday we were informed that one of the local businesses had approached us informally concerned with the amount of ash on their property after burning day.  If the problem persists they are prepared to make a formal complaint to the Council.

So think before you burn and wherever possible dont! Do not abuse communal bonfires or the recycling areas come to that and under no circumstances do you bring rubbish onto site from home or businesses to get rid of it.

Shed stove fires are allowed but again, dry wood only please.

Jackie Medcalf
Secretary OPFACIC

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