Cultivate yourself? This is how much you pay for an allotment garden across the country… and the easiest thing to give a green thumb to
- Freedom of information request finds the easiest area to get an allotment garden in England
- Annual costs were also looked at, with the cheapest plots available from just £17
- The most expensive area is Rochdale in the North West, where a plot costs £382 a year
Having an allotment garden is part of the simple life dream for many, but depending on where you live it can be difficult – and expensive – to get your hands on one.
A Freedom of Information request by do-it-yourself company GTSE has revealed the areas with the best access to allotments in England, as well as entry fees that can reach up to £382 a year.
It turned out that the council area with the most allotments per 100,000 inhabitants was the council of South Tyneside.
Purple patch: The easiest place to get an allotment in the UK is South Tyneside
| metropolitan council | District | Population | Number of lots (Council run) | Number of plots per 100,000 people (Council management) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Tyneside Borough Council | Tyne and wear | 147,800 | 1,500 | 1,015 |
| town of Barnsley | South Yorkshire | 244,600 | 1,920 | 785 |
| Sheffield City Council | South Yorkshire | 556,500 | 3,754 | 675 |
| North Tyneside City Council | Tyne and wear | 209,000 | 1,308 | 626 |
| Sunderland City Council | Tyne and wear | 274,200 | 1,685 | 615 |
| Source: GTSE |
GTSE compared data from 36 Metropolitan City Council areas in England, but excluded London boroughs due to high land value and population density.
It revealed that the cheapest average plots of land in England are offered by Stockport Borough Council at an average of £17 a year.
The most expensive area was Rochdale in the North West, where a plot to grow your own produce costs £382 a year.
| metropolitan council | Metropolitan Province | Annual average cost of a lot to nearest £ | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stockport City Council | Great Manchester | £17 | ||
| Kirklees City Council | West Yorkshire | £21 | ||
| Wakefield City Council | West Yorkshire | £26 | ||
| Sunderland City Council | Tyne and wear | £33 | ||
| Dudley City Council | West Midlands | £36 | ||
| Source: GTSE |
| metropolitan council | Metropolitan Province | Annual average cost of a lot to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|
| community of Rochdale | Great Manchester | £382 |
| St Helens City Council | Mersey side | £259 |
| Buren City Council | Great Manchester | £223 |
| Sefton Borough Council | Mersey side | £164 |
| Tameside Town Council | Great Manchester | £126 |
| Source: GTSE |
Tom Armenante, from GTSE said: ‘Our research has shown that there are huge differences in availability and costs around renting allotments in England.
‘However, several factors play a role here, as each municipality manages their city’s allotment gardens differently.
‘Some are run by the municipality, others are completely independent. Some plots are larger and others have higher costs due to access to water and the amount of work required to maintain.
Despite this, it is clear that demand is high and location really plays a role in how much residents end up paying and how long they wait to begin their allotment journey. It really is a postcode lottery.’
Congregations with the most allocations up for grabs
South Tyneside Borough Council topped the list of areas with the most council-owned parcels of land per 100,000 people with 1,015.
It was followed by two South Yorkshire – Barnsley and Sheffield – which ranked second and third with 785 and 675 plots per 100,000 people respectively.
They were in the top five with fellow Tyne and Wear Councils, North Tyneside and Sunderland.
| metropolitan council | Metropolitan Province | Population | Total number of parcels combined | Total combined plots per 100,000 people |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Tyneside Borough Council | Tyne and wear | 147,800 | 1500 | 1015 |
| North Tyneside City Council | Tyne and wear | 209,000 | 2076 | 993 |
| Doncaster City Council | South Yorkshire | 308.100 | 2554 | 829 |
| town of Barnsley | South Yorkshire | 244,600 | 1920 | 785 |
| Sunderland City Council | Tyne and wear | 274,200 | 2035 | 742 |
| Source: GTSE |
South Tyneside also topped the table when it came to both council and independently run allotments.
North Tyneside climbed the table when independents were added to the total, taking them from fourth to second, with 993 allotments per 100,000 people.
Doncaster swapped places with Barnsley Borough Council to enter the top five in third place, while its South Yorkshire neighbor Sheffield fell to fifteenth.
What does an assignment cost?
Land costs vary wildly from location to location based on many factors.
The most expensive council on our list was Rochdale with an average cost of £382 per year.
By contrast, allotment gardeners in Stockport pay an average of just £17 a year.
What are the costs? The annual cost for an assignment ranges from £17 to over £380
GTSE suggested this could be due to the average plot size and facilities, but added that locals in Rochdale are being discounted.
At a total of 15 locations in Rochdale, it is currently so busy that even the waiting lists have been closed.
The study found that a total of nine municipalities – or 25 percent – had one or more closed waiting lists and only 14 – that’s 39 percent – had plots immediately available.
The research also showed that barriers to access to allotment gardens in England are location dependent.
Overall, 56 percent of allocations offer discounts to certain users, which can help provide more equal opportunity.
For example, the discounts for over 65s in Tameside are up to 50 percent, and in Liverpool over 60s can also get a discount.
While there are many benefits to having an allotment garden, maintaining it requires dedication and hard work.