easington village allotment association rules and constitution

EASINGTON VILLAGE ALLOTMENT ASSOCIATION
RULES AND CONSTITUTION
1. That the Association be known as the Easington Village Allotment Association
and that every main tenant be a member of the Association and is entitled
to one vote at meetings. Second named tenants will not be members
of the Association and have no voting rights, however, they are able
to attend meetings in an observatory capacity.
2. That there be a Committee comprising of nine members, including a
Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer, and that this committee be elected
annually at the Annual General Meeting of the Association.
3. A quorum will consist of five members. No business shall be transacted if a
quorum is not present at a meeting of the Association or its committee.
Business not transacted at that meeting shall be transacted at the next
meeting.
4. An Annual General Meeting will be held in April each year. The meeting
venue and time will be at the discretion of the Committee.
5. At each Annual General Meeting the first business to be transacted shall be
to elect a Chairman and other Committee members.
6. At every meeting other than the Annual General Meeting the first business to
be transacted shall be to read the minutes of the previous meeting and after
consideration to approve the signing of the minutes as a correct record by
the Chairman.
7. No discussion shall take place upon the minutes except upon their accuracy.
Corrections to the minutes shall be made by resolution and signed by the
Chairman.
8. The Committee may deem it necessary to call other meetings on a regular
basis in order to transact business necessary to ensure the smooth day to
day running of the allotments such as, vacancies on the allotments, waiting
lists, disputes etc. At least one week's notice of all meetings to be displayed
in the notice board erected on site.
9. An extraordinary meeting of the Association may be called by the
membership should no less than ten members of the Association give three
weeks notice to the Committee in writing that they require such a meeting
to be held to deal with a specific item(s) of business relating to the
allotments. The business to be transacted must be clearly stated in the letter
to the Committee which must be duly signed by the ten members.
10. Voting at meetings shall be by a show of hands, or, if at least six members
so request, by signed ballot. The Chairman may give an original vote, and in
the case of an equality of votes may give a casting vote.
11. All meetings must be conducted in an orderly manner and questions
addressed through the Chairman.
GMC/MARCH12/FILE REF:CONSTITUTION & TULES & TENANCY AGREEMENT

12. A copy of minutes of all meetings must be forwarded to the Parish Council
(Landlord), for information and record purposes with reasonable dispatch.
13. Should disputes or disagreements on any matters arise, the Committee shall
endeavour to settle them fairly and amicably. In the case of any disputes
the Parish Council shall be the final arbiter and its decision will be final.
14. A copy of the Constitution and Rules of the Allotment Association must be
given to all tenants. All allotment tenants must sign the document in
agreement that their tenancies will be subject to the acceptance of the terms
and conditions therein.
15. The rent shall be set by the Parish Council and reviewed regularly. Each
member shall pay his rent on the due date (currently in the month of March).
16. Existing members will be given first choice when a garden becomes vacant,
i.e. swapping an existing garden for an alternative plot or taking on an
additional garden
17. Parishioners of Easington Village on the waiting list shall be given first
priority when an allotment becomes vacant before any person living outside
of the parish. Any unused allotment will be kept tidy by Council groundsman
(resources permitting).
18. All new tenancies will be subject to a 12 month probationary period,
to ensure compliance with the constitution and rules of the Allotment
Association.
19. No assignments, transfers or sub-lettings of allotments are permitted. The
co-operation of allotment tenants in observing this rule will be appreciated
and will avoid disappointment, and the possible eviction from allotments of
persons to whom any unauthorised transfers or sub-lettings have been
made.
20. All allotments must be used wholly or mainly for the cultivation of
vegetables, flowers or fruit crops for consumption by the tenant or his family.
21. The keeping of livestock (except for hens and rabbits) will not normally
be allowed, in consideration of other gardeners, unless previous permission
has already been given by the Association and Council to do so.
22. No cars to be garaged on the site and not to operate or allow to be operated
by himself or any other person any trade or business from the allotment.
23. Not to cause or permit any nuisance or annoyance to the occupier of any
other allotment garden or to obstruct any pathway set out by the Council for
the use of occupiers of allotment gardens.
24. The indiscriminate use of weedkiller is not allowed and consideration must be
given to fellow gardeners.
25. All dogs brought on the site must be kept under control and not allowed to
foul footpaths or roadways. No dogs to be kennelled on the gardens
overnight.
GMC/MARCH12/FILE REF:CONSTITUTION & TULES & TENANCY AGREEMENT

25. Each member is responsible for the general maintenance of his allotment and
for the upkeep and repair of adjoining hedges, fences, footpaths and main
driveways. No fences shall be erected unless by consent of the Association
and Council. Upon termination of the tenancy all fences hedges etc. erected
by the tenant become the property of the Council and must not be removed.
26. The consumption costs of the water supply provided by the Council on site
will be met by Council subsidy and the water surcharge included in the
annual rent levied by the Council. All tenants must use the water sensibly at
all times to eliminate excessive consumption costs and wastage. Whilst
sprinkler systems and prolonged use of hoses will not normally be permitted
under normal climatic conditions, some flexibility on this restraint will be
allowed during periodic dry spells to alleviate any hardship suffered by
gardeners, and in no circumstances must these be left unattended. The
water supply will normally be turned off from 31st October until the 1st of
April of each year, with provision for the water supply to be turned on for a
limited short period to allow tenants to fill containers if hardship or difficulty
is being experienced during a particularly dry Spring. The Council must be
advised through the Clerk on the occasions when these provisions are
required, and approval must be given. A prominent notice must be displayed
on site in the Council notice board, informing all tenants, prior to the water
being turned on for any period during the closed season. The Council shall
review the water consumption costs and water surcharge levied on tenants at
regular intervals.
27. To permit any member or officer of the Council to enter on the allotment
garden to inspect the plot at any time.
28. Before the expiration of any tenancy or sooner, to take down and remove
any sheds, greenhouses etc., erected or owned by the tenant, making good
all damage to the allotment thereby. Any structures not removed on
expiration of the tenancy shall become the property of the Council and will be
disposed of in accordance with the waiting list.
29. The tenancy may be terminated by:
1. Either party giving 6 months notice in writing expiring on either 1st
April or 30th September in any year.
2. The Council giving one month's notice in writing if:
2.1 the rent or any part thereof is in arrears for not less than 40
days.
2.2 there has been a breach by the tenant of any term or
condition of the tenancy.
2.3 the tenant shall become bankrupt.
30. In the case of 2 gardeners sharing a plot then they can have a joint tenancy
and both names will be on the tenancy agreement. The first name on the
agreement will be the main tenant. Should the main tenant no longer
require the agreement then the second name tenant can apply to take
over the tenancy by applying to the Allotment Association
Committee.
GMC/MARCH12/FILE REF:CONSTITUTION & TULES & TENANCY AGREEMENT