DIG HADFIELD - A New Grass Roots Organisation Has Germinated Which Plots To Sow The Seeds Of Change

Following a post on this blog by AR which you can read here there has been a steady trickle of e-mails to the site from local residents expressing interest in the subject. Consequently, the issue of lack of allotments in the area and in Hadfield specifically was discussed at the October meeting of TAHRA.

A decision followed to contact everyone who had expressed an interest, to discuss the subject, with a view setting up a local group that would campaign for allotment allocation in Hadfield. An inaugural meeting was held at the New Lamp, Bankbottom, Hadfield on Tuesday 28th October.

It was attended by around a dozen people, half of whom wanted an allotment and three of whom had already applied or given up trying. The meeting decided that they did indeed wish to set up an autonomous group that would press the council to discharge its duty to provide much needed
allotment land.

The first action of the group was to produce posters that have now been distributed to shops throughout Hadfield, asking anyone who wants a plot or who already has their name down for one, to contact them either through this site at tinhadra@aol.com or by phoning 866240. The idea is to try and establish just how many people there are wanting plots and to inform them about future meetings and/or activities that the group initiates.

The next planned meeting of Dig Hadfield is scheduled for Tuesday 25th November at the New Lamp, Bankbottom, Hadfield at 7.30pm although this is subject to confirmation nearer the time.
By way of an update, I can confirm that Dig Hadfield are now truly autonomous, as their very own blog has now been set up only today and can be found by clicking here. For reference, you can now contact them directly at dighadfield@gmail.com although we will still be happy to forward mail to them. We also have a permanent link to the site that you can find on the blue panel to the right hand side of this blog.

Co-incidentally and unbeknown to Dig Hadfield at the time of their inaugural meeting, another group led by Mark Alix has been created, entitled Glossop Action For Allotments (GAFA) who share the same aims. They will be presenting a petition to the Council in the morning (Friday 7th November), outside the Chinley offices of High Peak Borough Council, at 10am .
We wish the group maximum success tomorrow and Mark has said he intends to attend the next Dig Hadfield meeting, so the movement to move earth seems to have well and truly taken root.

Not a lotta Allotments

There's been a lot of talk just recently about allotments, or rather the lack of them, in Glossopdale.

Tintwistle has it's own on the Arnfield Allotments site, Glossop's are just off Gladstone Street (and there used to be some along Shirebrook right next to Manor Park), and in Padfield along Platt Street and behind Post Street. For an area serving as many people as Hadfield now does it is a sad state of affairs that we have...erm...none as far as I know.

The waiting lists for Glossopdale sites are very long, stretching into years and this wont change soon unless more land is brought under community use.

The demand for allotment gardens is already high and is bound to increase as we feel the pinch in our pockets with the rise of the cost of living and the credit crunch, but also I think people are more savvy these days when it comes to the food they put in their mouths.

We all now know and worry about food miles, pesticides, the decline of nutritional values in foods, the rise of obesity levels and other health related issues, food safety and Genetic Modification, loss of biodiversity and climate change. Then there's the rapid expansion and take-over by the supermarkets and the decline of local shops and local food.

There are, of course, great benefits to tending an allotment; it gets us out of the house and into the community, it fosters relationships, it is both healthy and educational. It's time we called for Hadfield residents be provided with allotment gardens.

Thankfully there is a law which requires local councils to provide allotments to residents if asked:

"if a council considers there is a demand, it has a statutory duty to provide a sufficient quantity of plots and to lease them to people living in its area. If local people feel there is a demand for allotments that is not being met, they can get together any six residents who are registered on the electoral roll and put their case to the local authority to consider." (http://www.farmgarden.org.uk/ari/documents/plotholdersguide.pdf)

Glossop Wholefoods is carrying a petition at the moment asking for a greater provision of allotments in Glossopdale with well over 300 names already signed. It is worth signing it but I feel we need something that will ensure Hadfield doesn't get side-lined again - our own local campaign.

You can also phone Councillor Graham Oakley on 01457 866353 to chat about allotment provision.

Hopefully, if enough people are interested in pursuing this we can start the ball rolling for some Hadfield allotment spaces.

Residents Meeting - Monday 1st September, The New Lamp, Bankbottom, Hadfield 8.00pm

Next Monday is the 1st September. It also happens to be the first Monday in the month which means our monthly meeting will take place at the New Lamp, Bankbottom, Hadfield on Monday 1st September at 8.00pm. Here follows the Agenda but anyone wishing to add an item can e-mail it for inclusion and we will do our best to accomodate. All welcome.

AGENDA - RESIDENTS MEETING - MONDAY 1ST SEPT 2008 - THE NEW LAMP

1. Apologies.
2. Matters arising from last meeting.
3. Correspondence.
4. Update on Sorting Office Dispute.
5. Update on Lambgates situation.
6. Sustainable Communities Act - what it is and how we can use it.
7. Allotments.
8. Chapel Lane Park threat?
9. A.O.B.