Allotments

St Albans City and District Council operates 10 allotment sites in St Albans and 1 in Park Street. These allotment sites include:

• Burydell Lane Allotment Site
• Camp Allotment Site
• Camp 1 Allotment Site
• Cottonmill Allotment Site 
• Cunningham Hill Allotment Site
• Folly Lane Allotment Site 
• Nunnery 1 Allotment Site
• Nunnery 2 Allotment Site
• Sandridge Road Allotment Site
• Shirley Road Allotment Site
• Sopwell Mill Allotment Site 

From 1st April 2024 to 31st March 2025 the allotment  rent charges are as follows.

Increases in allotment rents have to be notified to tenants twelve months in advance of the date of increase. The Council has decided there will be a  price increase for the period 1st April 2025 to 31st March 2026.

Please note the concession for Senior Citizens and will only be applicable to pensioners on pension credit. If you are affected by this please contact us via email at allotments@stalbans.gov.uk

Due to high demand, all of our allotment sites currently have a waiting list. Details can be found below for each site.

When you reach the top of the waiting list we will contact you in writing to offer you a plot.  You must respond within two weeks.  If you do not respond you will be removed from the waiting list and we will off the plot to the next person on list.

Applicants wishing to join the waiting list must: 

• be a resident of the St Albans District or Park Street 
• be 18 years or older
• only apply for the waiting list for one allotment site.

We strongly advise that you view the available plots before deciding to apply as they are taken on an "as seen" basis. 

Due to the extremely high demand for allotments, the Council is currently restricting the number of plots to one full per household so we regret that you cannot currently go back on the list for additional plots.
 

The Council may transfer people from one site waiting list to another, but only upon the instructions of the individual concerned. The transferral date will be the date that we are asked to make the change.

Once your application has been approved, we will write to you to confirm:

• which allotment site waiting list your name has been added to
• where you are on the waiting list
• approximately how long you can expect to wait.

Once an allotment plot becomes available at the site that you are waiting for, you will be sent information about the vacant plots and you will be given instructions on how to contact our site representative.

You will need to respond to this letter within 14 days, otherwise you will be removed from the waiting list.
 

Applying to join the waiting list for one of our allotment sites couldn’t be easier. 

Please see our Waiting List Policy.

If you wish to apply, simply click on the Apply Online button below or apply through your My St Albans Account.

Apply Online

The current allotment rules were implemented on 1st April 2019. 
 

• St Albans Allotment Rules ( pdf - 129.80 KB )

The Allotment Strategy sets out the Councils’ aims and objectives for the allotment sites managed by Council over the next 5 years. 

• St Albans Allotment Strategy 2014-2019 ( pdf - 783.71 KB )

Bonfires are not permitted on allotment sites between 1 May and 30 September of each year. From 1 October to 30 April of each year, bonfires are only permitted on Tuesdays and Saturdays after 12pm.

For further details on the use of bonfires on allotment sites, see Section 3.4 of the St Albans Allotment Rules.
 

The Town and Parish Councils within the District also operate their own allotment sites. If you would like further information about allotment sites where you live, please contact your local Town or Parish Council.

A second name cannot be added to an allotment tenancy. A tenancy agreement is made between one named individual and the Council. When this agreement comes to an end or is terminated by either party, the plot would then be offered to the next person on the waiting list for that particular site. In exceptional circumstances, the Council may allocate the plot to an individual who has worked the plot with the named tenant. The Council will consider any such requests on a case by case basis and the Council's decision is final.

Yes, this is an excellent way of increasing the fertility of your plot. This allows all your vegetable material to be recycled and limits the amount of waste to be removed from the site. 

Due to the high demand for allotment plots, the Council has restricted the allocation of plots to one full per household.

The council will give allotment tenants consent to install a non-permanent shed or greenhouse, measuring a maximum of 6 x 8 ft (for example, installed on paving slabs and not on a concrete base).

Please note that in some locations you may need to obtain planning permission, so it is advisable to contact the Council’s Planning Department to seek advice.
 

The National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners Ltd has lots of useful information.

There are also plenty of books available and lots of expertise from other plot-holders, who are eager to share their knowledge.

If your site has an Allotment Association, it's well worth joining. It’s a great way to meet new people and take part in social events that they often organise throughout the year. See Allotment Associations above.
 

Allotment plots vary in size, but most are around 125 to 250 square metres in size.

Yes, plot allocation is set at one full sized allotment plot per household. If you currently have a half plot and would like an additional half plot or want to move to a full sized plot, we will add you back on to the waiting list.

To be eligible to go back on to the waiting list you must meet the following criteria:

• must have been a tenant at the site for a minimum period of 12 months;
• must not have received any Non Cultivation letters or Notices to Quit from the Council within the previous 12 month period;
• must not currently hold more than one half sized plot;
• the named tenant must apply directly to the Council in writing or via email at allotments@stalbans.gov.uk

Plots are offered on an “as-seen” basis.
 

Yes, however there is a charge of £5.

Contact the Parks and Green Spaces team for further information on 01727 819366.

The Council’s Allotment Waiting List Policy can be viewed in Section 2: Eligibility Criteria and Allocation of Plots of the 'St Albans Allotment Rules' document. This document is available for download under Allotment Rules and Strategy - Allotment Rules above.