Allotments and food growing

The Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 requires each local authority to prepare a food growing strategy within two years of Part 9 of the Act being enabled on 1 April 2018.

We carried out public consultation and worked with internal and external partners to create a draft strategy and following a delay due to the pandemic, the Food Growing Strategy 2020-25 was approved by the Executive Committee in December 2020.  This outlines how we intend to work towards increasing food growing provision as well as how we will identify available land to develop allotment sites and land suitable for alternative food growing purposes such as raised beds, community growing or unserviced plots.

We will create an annual action plan in association with our partners which will be monitored regularly and an annual report will be published in accordance with Scottish Government guidelines.

Food growing annual report

Each year, we need to publish an annual food growing report to show how we are working towards meeting our strategic aims. The report covers mandatory elements outlined by the Scottish Government including:

• the location and size of each allotment site and the number of plotholders
• details of leased sites including the duration of lease and the rent payable
• the rent payable for each allotment in the area of the authority and how fair rents are calculated
• waiting list numbers including how many applicants have been on the list for over 5 years
• the steps taken to comply with the duty imposed and reasons for failure to comply
• disability access and details of adjustments requested
• income and expenditure