Local Green Party councillors have condemned government proposals allowing councils to sell off allotments to raise funds, calling the idea “deeply disturbing” at the start of National Allotment Week (11–17 August).
Housing Secretary Angela Rayner recently announced new “flexibility” for councils to sell assets, including allotment plots. Some sites nationwide have already been sold, with several later used for development.
Stroud Town Council owns five allotment sites — Bisley Old Road, Spider Lane, Summer Street, Stratford Road, and Uplands — totalling over 200 plots, all of which are fully used and have waiting lists. Sites in other parts of the district are owned by other town and parish councils.
Cllr Lucas Schoemaker, Green district councillor for Trinity ward, where the Spider Lane site is located, said: “Though the Town Council has no intention whatsoever to sell off its allotments, my fear is that what the government calls ‘flexibility’ could quickly become an instruction to sell.
“The idea that selling off much-loved community assets is being promoted as a way to raise money raises serious concerns about further cuts to local council funding.
“Allotments are a vital part of Stroud’s green spaces, giving those without gardens access to the outdoors, enabling affordable production of healthy, local food, and supporting mental wellbeing. The government should be protecting these spaces, not putting their future in doubt.”
The Greens are calling on the government to guarantee the long-term protection of allotments and other local green spaces.
