Nearly 70 allotment holders booted off their plots after 130 years

Nearly 70 allotment holders are being booted off their plots despite being there for 130 years – after the landowner served notice. The 64 green-fingered gardeners in Bath in Somerset are being evicted from the site where allotments have been since 1894. The site is owned by a distant relative of the original landowner who is not a resident of Bath. Bath and North East Somerset Council was warned the owner of Combe Down Allotments planned to terminate the lease. The council said it had been trying to negotiate with the landowner but he refused to meet them. Cllr Tim Ball said: “This land has been used for allotments since 1894 and continues to be of significant social value for the community so this is a hugely disappointing decision.”