Hello, I’m Deborah and I specialise in policy matters relating to UK allotment gardens.
Why the “UK” bit? Surely everyone knows we have allotments in the UK?
Well, in many parts of the world, ‘allotments’ are actually called ‘community gardens’. However, no matter the name, they are always the same thing: small contiguous plots of land provided for the growing of food for consumption at home. Here in the UK we call these Allotment Gardens.
My work is in the ‘back room’ of allotments: public policy, management guidance, allotments regeneration and (increasingly) the creation of new allotment sites. This has been my work for over 20 years.
At present I am engaged on a paid basis with the charity Green Allotments, as CEO, where I head-up the charity’s new and innovative work of buying land and creating new, non-profit, private allotment sites.
Being deeply involved in allotments nationally since 2003, I have been privileged to act in the background to the resurgence in popularity of allotment gardens. Recently, however, I’ve noticed that much of the guidance, policy statements, and detailed resources that help form the backbone of this field have become somewhat scattered and, in some cases, have disappeared completely. For example, did you know that central government for England has a guide for new allotment plotholders, which councils and associations can share with new tenants? It’s called “Allotments – A Plotholder’s Guide” and you can download free on the Resources page of this website.
And so this is the impetus for this website: to share resources on allotments for a varied audience: allotment societies, landowners, councils, journalists, students, academics, and of course the curious plotholder who wants to learn at bit more about allotments and keep their allotment site thriving. You are all welcome here.
I am always keen to connect and learn from people who are interested in allotments at any level, or whose work in other related fields dovetails with mine. Please use the Contact Form to say Hello. I hope you find this website a useful resource and if you have any suggestions or feedback please get in touch by using the Contact Form.
You can follow me on Bluesky where I share Allotment News from around the UK and on LinkedIn for professional connections and more.