SWINBROOK ROAD ALLOTMENTS Submission for a Diploma in Innovative Activities on allotment sites

Swinbrook Road Allotments AIMS To improve soil fertility and working conditions for all plot holders on Swinbrook Road Allotments and so increasing the popularity of allotments within our local community

BACKGROUND INFORMATION Swinbrook Road Allotments is a 3-acre site to the North of the town of Carterton in West Oxfordshire on the edge of the Cotswolds. It comprises some 45 full allotments, many of which have had to be sub-divided due to pressure from more families wanting an allotment. The waiting time is now over 4 years.

For many years open agricultural land has surrounded the site, but due to the pressure of housing being required we are now surrounded by house building on three sides. We have tried to improve all the facilities on the site by using several innovative techniques, such as reusing materials that would otherwise have gone to landfill or been burnt.

Aerial view of the allotment site (taken before housing development)

OBJECTIVES To reuse and recycle on our site as much unwanted material, as possible, that would have normally been sent to landfill, sent for burning or transported by road for disposal by deep burial. Unwanted material comes from many different sources. By reducing landfill tonnages we minimize pollution by reducing road journeys to landfill sites.

Objective 1 The major employer in our area is RAF Brize Norton, which is now the biggest RAF airfield in the UK. The RAF employ civilian contactors to cut the airfield grass and clear up all fallen leaves. By chance when talking to the contractor we discovered that all the grass cuttings & fallen leaves were being picked up and put into 15 cubic foot skips, which were then being driven by road some 15 miles to the nearest landfill site. The charge to unload each skip is £125 and each load is then deep buried . Many loads of leaves and grass were disposed of this way at great expense and causing pollution.

Objective 1 continued ... The allotments committee thought we could make far better use of the fallen leaves and grass and so decided to make the RAF an offer to compost all this waste for our members. Their contractors pick up all leaves and grass cuttings and transport them to our site where they are all stored and composted for 12 months before use on the allotments to enrich the soil.

Leaf Pile

Objective 2 At the very same time our mains electrical supplier, Southern Electricity, decided to replace many of the timber electricity poles near and on our site. Normally these poles are taken away and burnt. We asked if we could have all the waste poles in the area, which were not wanted. These poles were transported to our site and stored.

Waste Telegraph Poles

Objective 2 continued ... We applied to The Environment Agency for a licence to accept horticultural waste and this was granted. We had an unused/very wet area of land on the site, and members rapidly dug drainage trenches and then levelled the site with a hardcore base of old unwanted bricks and stone.

Objective 2 continued ... The stored telegraph poles were cut into 10 foot lengths and used to form the perimeter of a leaf compound. We were then able to put up a second hand reclaimed chain link fence to hold all the leaves and grass cuttings. It is now estimated that we accept and compost up to 1000 tons of leaves and grass each season. This is left for approximately 12 months and allotment members are free to use all the resulting compost on their allotments.

Waste telegraph poles supporting the leaf compound

Objective 3 A local landscape gardener visited our site to see what we were doing and offered us wood chippings from his arboricultural work. We now accept many loads of chippings and what is not composted is used to form the base of footpaths around the site.

Chipping paths

Objective 4 To improve the site’s privacy; some while ago our members planted approximately 150 trees along our southern border to screen the site from 150 new houses that are due to be built in our neighboring field. These are now growing well.

Objective 5 The housing developers next to our site use 2-metre high wooden fencing for security purposes. As soon as the houses are finally occupied the fencing is removed, put into large skips and sent for burning as waste. We asked if the building company would donate this unwanted fencing to the allotments and they agreed. We now take this unwanted fencing and use it to build sheds, raised beds and anything else that needs to be built from timber..

Two examples of sheds made from unwanted fencing materials

Objective 6 It is now illegal to burn unwanted agricultural plastic string and as a result a local farmer brings all his old string for us to use on the allotments. This is available for all plotholders to use on site.

Objective 7 Much military equipment that was used in the Gulf Conflict returned to RAF Brize Norton for disposal. One such item is the metal gabion sections that had been used in the desert to make artificial walls when filled with sand for personnel protection. Four sections of wire cage made a square wall. These sections are no longer required for military purposes and have been extensively reused on our allotment site as fencing, compost bins, chicken enclosures.

Fencing made from recycled metal gabion sections

Compost bins made from recycled gabion sections

Chicken run made from recycled security fencing

Roadway surface made by allotment holders from unwanted road scalpings.

Innovative reuse of redundant water tank and chimney pot

Re-use of a redundant agricultural liquid mineral container Re-use of a redundant agricultural liquid mineral container. Now used as a water butt.

Fencing made from re-used pallets

Pathways made from unwanted/redundant paving slabs. Thrown away by local housing developer

Celebrating 40 successful years on our allotments

Conclusion The allotment committee and plot holders are committed to use new, innovative methods to improve the soil, growing conditions and life on these allotments. By recycling, processing and reusing what is normally considered waste we are minimizing pollution from diesel emissions, from burning waste wood and unwanted journeys to landfill, all to the benefit of our allotment plotholders.

SUCCESS! The work we have done to improve our site, using innovative activities have made our allotments more popular than ever. M J Alcock Secretary 12 February 2018