Dear Ms Theis,

Request for information RFI/02254

Thank you for your email dated 7^th July 2010 in which you asked various questions about land for growing on.

1) What land for allotments or growing spaces, both private and public, have you requested in the last 5 years?

- A community garden will be provided in part of the new public park on the Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) in the Kidbrooke Masterplan (Planning ref. 08/2782/O).

- The application for the Heart of East Greenwich Development (Planning ref. 08/0688/F) included allotments/community gardens on the roofs of some of the buildings.

2) From the land requested in the last 5 years, what land has not been put into use for your residents to grow on?

The park in Kidbrooke is being delivered in phases. This particular phase has not yet come forward for detailed approval. The Heart of East Greenwich Development has not been implemented yet.

3) How many planning applications do you currently have which could be used to make a S106 requirement for land to grow on?

We have an adopted Supplementary Planning Document on Section 106 Planning Obligations. This does not make specific provision for allotments. Therefore we could not insist on such land being provided as part of a planning application in terms of the S106 Agreement.

4) What targets are in place to increase the use of S106 to provide more land for your residents to grow on?

There are currently no targets in place.

5) What is currently being done in your borough to provide alternative land for residents to grow on?

Policy O14 in Greenwich's existing Unitary Development Plan (UDP) states that the loss or change of use of existing allotments will be resisted and new allotments will be encouraged, particularly in the north of the Borough and this policy is used as appropriate when assessing planning applications. This policy is currently being reviewed as we work on producing the Core Strategy, a replacement to the UDP. An Open Space Strategy is being prepared which will include an assessment of the need for allotments in the Borough. This will inform the policy in the Core Strategy. A consultation on the Core Strategy will be taking place this autumn, when the new policies will be available to view and comment on.

In addition, the Directorate of Cultural & Community Services have cleared a number of previously unlettable plots (i.e. water logged plots, plots overgrown for a number of years) to make way for new tenants.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, you should write to the Chief Executive, London Borough of Greenwich, Town Hall, Wellington Street, Woolwich SE18 6PW.

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Council. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Yours sincerely,

Jan Goldsmith

Assistant Policy Officer

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