Private site near under fire
rented out to a tenant farmer to graze cattle at present.
Simon Talbot-Ponsonby, chair of Abbots Leigh Parish Council, said: “We believe that there wouldn’t be a great demand for allotments from the immediate neighbourhood, as Abbots Leigh properties are fortunate to generally have fairly large gardens.
“The allotments will therefore be catering for a wider catchment which will inevitably attract a significant amount of traffic.
“We are told that, at the Bath site which is next to the Park and Ride site, there is parking for around 30 cars.
“On a like-for-like basis this site would require space for at least 70 cars.
“The general perception within the village of Abbots Leigh is that the impact of the allotments with all their ancillary buildings will be huge, a site a quarter of the size might be acceptable.
“The scale of this proposal would have a dramatic impact on the landscape, which is located in open green belt countryside on a very well used long distance national footpath, The Monarch’s Way.
“The comment most heard in the village is ‘a blot on the landscape’,” he added.
A spokesperson for Forestry England said: “The majority of the avenue at Leigh Woods is owned freehold by Forestry England.
“While we have been approached by Roots, no agreement has been offered to grant them access to the proposed allotment site.”
Roots’ co-founder William Gay said the plan for allotments in Abbots Leigh did not require planning permission, and the location was a good one, on a main road in an area that already has a range of uses, from woodland to sports grounds.
He said 30 per cent of the allotment pitches, which range from £10 to £50 a month, had already been booked for next spring.