How does your garden grow - cash for more allotments in Newtown
Newtown is to get more allotments thanks to more than £130,000 being invested across Wales.
The new support package has been announced today by Social Farms & Gardens working in partnership with the Welsh Government to help communities, housing associations and local authorities, including town and community councils, meet a growing demand for allotments.
The announcement, in national allotments week will see money used to sites to be turned into productive areas. They include the Cultivate project in Newtown.
Over the last six months, Social Farms & Gardens has been mapping the current provision of allotments and other community growing spaces, including community orchards, Incredible Edible Projects, community gardens and community supported agriculture sites.
Research was also carried out on waiting lists for allotments, with some waiting many years to access a plot. The new funding will target those areas first.
Gary Mitchell, Wales manager for Social Farms & Gardens, said: “Allotments are part of our heritage. They have been a means for people to provide food and sustenance since the 1800s, but now, perhaps more than ever, we as a society are more interested in where our food comes from and how it is grown.
“Allotments provide an important space for us to control those elements. They provide a boost to our health and wellbeing, are great for adding biodiversity to urban settings and provide a space for social interactions. This funding, support and vision from Welsh Government really will make a difference in the areas we can support.”
“The Welsh Government recognises the importance of allotments, not only as a means to producing affordable food, but for the health benefits they offer to plot holders, for the biodiversity they encourage even in the most urban of areas and for the important part they play in social cohesion,” said First Minister Mark Drakeford.
“Although Wales is known for its agriculture and is rural in nature, the demand for allotments exists in every local authority area, not just the larger cities and more urban conurbations. This funded work will help to ensure access to allotments is improved in areas where it is most needed.”
