Cllr Jillian Creasy
The Green Party has welcomed a motion to Full Council today about how unused land could be used by the community to grow food. However, they proposed an amendment calling for any such initiative to be properly supported.
Cllr Creasy said, “Following concerted pressure, the council is beginning to put much needed resources into running the allotments service. It was the Green Party which proposed that Sheffield opt into
the Sustainable Communities Act and we are delighted that the proposal to allow communities to grow food on unused brown field sites has been accepted by government. But for this project to succeed it will need to be properly supported and must not detract from efforts to protect and improve statutory allotments.”
ENDS
Amendment to NOM 11 given by Cllr Shaffaq Mohammed
Proposed by Cllr Jillian Creasy, seconded by Cllr Rob Murphy
Add after (e)
(f) welcomes the increase in revenue funding for the allotments office,
as requested by the Allotments Advisory Group, which will allow the
employment of a second allotments officer to help make sure that
existing allotments are fully used;
(g) notes that setting up leases, clearing brown field sites and
training local people to grow their own food will require substantial
financial and human resources which must not detract from efforts to
protect and improve statutory allotment sites;
(h) requests that in drawing up her plan for community gardens on
council land, the Cabinet Member for Communities liase closely with
interested parties such as the Allotments Advisory Group, relevant
Voluntary Community and Faith sector groups and the Health Improvement
Team who are working on the Sheffield Food Plan;
ENDS