Anger over Sheffield allotment closure

Firth Park allotments to shut for 18 months for Yorkshire Water work, leaving growers and a charity at risk.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: “Temporarily moving the allotment tenants is not an easy decision to take and we understand how important allotment spaces are, providing health and wellbeing benefits, as well as the joy of gardening and growing your own fresh produce. The important £3.2m project we will be carrying out at the site of the existing combined sewer overflow (CSO) in the coming months is to reduce storm overflows into Firth Park stream.

“We’ve been working closely with Sheffield Council, Friends of Firth Park community charity and allotment tenants since October to support them with assistance and funding to help move tenants onto temporary pitches at nearby allotment sites for those who want them. We’re working together to find safe and suitable storage for equipment and garden tools for those tenants who have decided not to move, so that it can be safely returned to their allotment plot once the work is completed.

“A number of the plots are currently overgrown, and together with our contract partners Ward & Burke, we’ll be working with the local authority to clear these so that more spaces are available for tenants once the construction work is complete. We’re also providing other betterment activity such as new fencing, materials and planting native species, when we hand the site back.

“We want to make this temporary transition as smooth as possible. Tenants will receive compensation for their plots, as well as the offer for a temporary space and we are working with the Charity to ensure it can continue its great community work, in a bigger and better allotment space, once the investment and construction is complete.

“While we appreciate that this is hugely inconvenient for tenants, of the several options that were considered, Bushes allotment at Vickers Road was identified as the location that would create the lowest level of disruption for the local community during construction. As the location of the existing CSO, it was also identified as the site delivering the most benefit (90% reduction of storm discharges into Firth Park Stream) while providing the best value for money to our customers.

“Compensation letters are on their way to tenants and our agents are on hand to negotiate any specialist items, by exception, so that they can be fairly compensated during the temporary move.”