Powers of County Councils
in relation to the provision of
Small Holdings
7. -(1) A county council may, for the purpose of providing small
holdings for persons
who desire to buy or lease and will themselves cultivate
the holdings,
by agreement purchase or take on lease, land whether situate
within or
without their county.
(2)
If a county council are unable to acquire by agreement and on
reasonable terms
suitable land for the purpose of providing small holdings,
for persons
who desire to lease small holdings, they may for that purpose
acquire
compulsorily in accordance with the provisions of this Act relating
to compulsory
acquisition of the land.
(3)
A county council shall not acquire land for small holdings save
as
such price
or rent that, in the opinion of the council, all expenses incurred
by the council
in relation to the land will be recouped out of the purchase
money for
the land sold by the council, or in the case of land let out of
the
rent, and
the council shall fix the purchase money or rent at such reasonable
amount as
will, in their opinion, guard them against loss.
8.
-(1) A county council may, if they think fit before sale or letting,
adapt for
small holdings any land acquired by them for that purpose, by
dividing
and fencing it, making occupation roads, and executing any other
works, such
as works for the provision of drainage or water supply,
which
can in the
opinion of the council be more economically and efficiently
executed
for the land as a whole.
(2)A
county council may also, if they think fit, as part of the agreement
for the
sale of letting of a small holding, adapt the land for a small
holding by
erecting
thereon such buildings, or making such adaptations of existing
buildings, as
in their opinion are required for the due occupation of the
holding, and
cannot be made by the purchaser or tenant.
9.
-(1) A county council shall apportion the total cost of the acquisition
of land,
and of any adaptation thereof, among the several holdings in such
manner as
seems just, and shall, save as hereinafter mentioned, offer the
small holdings
for sale or letting in accordance with rules under this Part of
this Act.
(2)
A county council shall have power -
(a)
to sell or let one or more small holdings to a number of persons
working
on a co-operative system, provided such system be
approved
by the county council; and
(b)
with the consent of the Board, to let one or more small holdings
to
any association formed for the purposes of creating or
promoting
the creation of small holdings, and so constituted
that
the division of profits amongst the members of the
association
is prohibited or restricted
(3)
The cost of acquisition and adaptation shall for the purposes
of this
section
include every expense incurred by the council in relation to the
land,
inclusive
of any allowance to any officers of the council for work done
in
relation
thereto.
10.
-(1) a county council acquiring land for small holdings shall
make
rules
for carrying into effect the provisions of this Act relating to
small
holdings
and in particular -
(a)
as to the manner in which holdings are to be sold or let or
offered
for
sale or letting; and
(b)
as to the notice to be given of the offer for sale or letting;
and
(c)
for guarding against any small holding being let or sold
to a person
who
is unable to cultivate it properly, and otherwise for securing
the proper
cultivation
of a holding; and
(d)
for prescribing the terms and conditions on or subject to
which
small holdings
are to be sold or let by the county council.
(2)
All rules made under this section shall be subject to confirmation
by
the Board.
11.
-(1) The purchase money for each small holding sold by a
county
council
shall include the costs of registration of title, but shall not
include
any expense
incurred by the purchaser for legal or other advice or assistance.
(2)
A purchaser shall, within such time, not less than one month after
the
agreement for purchase, as is fixed by rules under this Act, complete
the
purchase.
(3)
On such completion he shall pay not less than one fifth of the
purchase
money.
(4)
A portion representing not more than one fourth of the purchase
money
may, if the county council think fit, be secured by a perpetual
rentcharge
which shall be redeemable in manner directed by section
forty-five
of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act, 1881, with respect
to
rentcharges to which that section applies.
(5)
The residue (if any) of the purchase money shall be secured by
a
charge
on the holding in favour of the council, and shall either be repaid
by
half-yearly
instalments of principal with such interest, and within such term
not exceeding
fifty years from the date of sale, as may be on with the council,
or
shall, if the purchaser so requires, be repaid with such interest
and within
such term
as aforesaid by a terminable annuity payable by equal half-yearly
instalments.
The amount for the time being unpaid may at any time be
discharged,
and any such terminable annuity may at any time be redeemed,
in
accordance with tables fixed by the county council.
(6)
A council may, if they think fit, agree to postpone for a term
not exceeding
five years the time for payment of all or any part of an instalment
either
of principle or interest or of a terminable annuity, in consideration
of
expenditure
by the purchaser which, in the opinion of the council, increases
the
value of the holding, but shall do so on such terms as will, in
their opinion,
prevent
them from incurring any loss.
(7) A small holding may be sold subject to such rights of way
or other
rights
for the benefit of other small holdings as the council
considers
necessary
or expedient.
12.
-(1) A small holding sold by a county council under this Act or
any enactment
repealed by this Act shall for a term of twenty years from the
date
of
the sale, and thereafter so long as any part of the purchase money
remains
unpaid,
be held subject to the following conditions:-
(a)
any periodical payments due in respect of the purchase money
shall be
duly
made;
(b)
the holding shall not be divided, subdivided, assigned, let, or
sublet
without
the consent of the county council;
(c)
the holding shall be cultivated by the owner or occupier as the
case may
be, and shall not be used for any purpose other than agriculture;
(d)
not more than one dwelling-house shall be erected on the holding;
(e)
any dwelling-house erected on a holding shall comply with such
requirements
as the county council may impose for securing
healthiness
and freedom from overcrowding.
(f)
no dwelling-house or building on the holding shall be used for
the sale
of
intoxicating liquors;
(g)
in the case of any holding on which, in the opinion of the county
council,
a dwelling-house ought not to be erected, no dwelling- house shall
be
erected
on the holding without the consent of the county council:
Provided
that a county council may, if they think fit, relax the condition
that
not
more than one dwelling-house shall be erected on a holding, if
in their
opinion
such relaxation will be for the benefit of that or adjacent small
holdings
provided by the council, but so that the council shall not authorise
more
than one dwelling-house to be erected for occupation with any
one
small holding.
(2)
If any such condition is broken, the council may, after giving
the
owner
an opportunity of remedying the breach (if it is capable of remedy),
cause
the holding to be sold.
(3)
If, on the decease of the owner while the holding is subject to
conditions
imposed by this section, the holding would, by reason of any device,
bequest,
intestacy, or otherwise, become subdivided, the council may require
the holding
to be sold within twelve months after such decease to some one
person,
and, if default is made in so selling the holding, the council
may cause
the
holding to be sold.
(4) Where under either of the two preceding subsections a county
council
have power to cause or require a small holding to be sold, the
council
may, in
event of their requiring such holding for the purposes of small
holdings,
by notice in writing require the holding to be sold to themselves
at
such
price as, in default of agreement, may be determined by arbitration,
and thereupon
the council shall, after such date as may be specified by the
notice,
and
on production to the registrar of the land registry of evidence
of service
of
the notice and of the payment of the sum so agreed or determined,
or of
the
tender of such payment, be registered as the proprietor of the
land in
place
of the registered proprietor, and such registration shall operate
as a registration
on a transfer for valuable consideration under the
Land
Transfer Acts, 1875 and 1897.
A
notice for the purposes of this subsection shall be deemed to
be
sufficiently
served if sent by registered post addressed to the owner or the
personal
representatives of the deceased owner at his registered address
or at his
last known place of abode.
This
subsection shall not apply in the case where a small holding has
been
let
by a county council.
(5)
Any sale by a county council under this section may be made
either
subject
to the charge in respect of purchase money or free, wholly or
partly,
from
that charge, and in either case the provisions of this Act with
respect to
the
purchase money shall apply in like manner as if the sale were
the first
sale
of the holding.
(6)
The proceeds of the sale shall be applied in discharge of any
unpaid
purchase money for the holding, or redemption of any rentcharge
or
terminable
annuity which is not to continue a charge on the holding, and,
subject
as aforesaid, shall be paid to the person appearing to the council
to be
entitled
to receive the same.
(7)
A county council may, under special circumstances, to be recorded
in
their minutes, sell or consent to the sale under this section
of a small
holding
free from all or any of the conditions imposed by this section,
and
may
give such consent on such terms as they think fit.
(8)
A small holding let by a county council shall be held subject
to the
conditions
on which it would under this section be held if it were sold,
except
so
far as those conditions relate to the purchase money, and except
so far as
is
otherwise expressly provided by this section; and, if any such
condition or
any
term of the letting is broken, the council may, after giving the
tenant an
opportunity
of remedying the breach (if it is capable of remedy), determine
the
tenancy.
(9)
Nothing in or done under this section shall derogate from the
effect
of
any building or sanitary byelaws for the time being in force.
13.
-(1) Where a county council have purchased land for small holdings,
they
shall apply to be registered as proprietors thereof under the
Land
Transfers
Acts, 1875 and 1897, and may be registered as proprietors of the
land
with any title authorised by those Acts.
(2) When a county council, after having been so registered,
transfer
any
such land to a purchaser of a small holding, the purchaser shall
be
registered
as proprietor of the land with an absolute title, subject only
to such
incumbrances
as may be created under this Act; and in any case the remedy
of
any person claiming by title paramount to the county council in
respect
either
of title or incumbances shall be in damages only, and such damages
shall
be recoverable against the county council.
(3)
Rules under the Land Transfer Acts, 1875 and 1897, may -
(a)
adapt those Acts to the registration of small holdings, with such
modifications
as appear to be required; and
(b)
on the application and at the expense of a county council,
provide,
by the appointment of local agents or otherwise, for the carrying
into effect the objects of this section.
(d)
not more than one dwelling-house shall be erected on
the
holding;
(e)
any dwelling-house erected on the holding shall comply with such
requirements
as the county council may impose for securing
healthiness
and freedom from overcrowding;
(f)
no dwelling-house or building on the holding shall be used
for
the sale of intoxicating liquors;
(g)
in the case of any holding on which in the opinion of the
county
council,
a dwelling-house ought not to be erected, no dwelling-
erected,
no dwelling-house shall be erected on the holding
without
the consent of the county council:
Provided
that a county council may, if they think fit, relax the condition
that
not more than
one dwelling-house shall be erected on a holding, if in their
such relaxtion
will be for the benefit of that or adjacent small holdings
provided by the
council, but so that the council shall not authotise more than
one
dwelling-house to be erected for occupation with any one small
holding.
(2)
If any such condition is broken, the council may, after giving
the
owner an
opportunity of remedying the breach (if it is capable of remedy),
cause the
holding to be sold.
(3)
If, on the decease of the owner while the holding is subject to
the
subject
to the conditions imposed by this section, the the holding would,
by
reason of
any devise, bequest, intestacy, or otherwise, become subdivided,
the councol
may require the holding to be sold within twelve months after
such decease
to some one person, and, if default is made in so selling the
holding,
the council may cause the holding to be sold.
(4)
Where under either of the two preceding subsections a county
council
have power to cause or require a small holding to be sold, the
council
may, in
the event of their requiring such holding for the purposes of
small
holdings,
by notice in writing require the holding to be sold to themselves
at
such price
as in default of agreement, may be determined by arbitration,
and thereupon
the council shall, after such date as may be specified by the
notice,
and on production to the registrar of the of the land registry
of
of evidence
of service of the notice and of the payment of the sum so agreed
or determined,
or the tender of such payment, be registered as the
proprietor,
and such regristration shall operate as a registration on a transfer
for valuable
consideration under the Land Transfer Acts, 1875 and 1897.
A
notice for the puropses of this subsection shall be deemed to
be
sufficiently
served if sent by registered post addressed to the owner at his
last known
place of abode.
This
subsection shall not apply in the case where a small holding has
been
let by a
county council.
14.
A county council shall keep a list of the owners and occupiers
of
small holdings
sold or let by them, and a map or plan showing the size,
boundaries,
and situation of each small holding so sold or let.
15.
If, at any time after the restrictive conditions imposed by this
Act
have ceased
to attach to a small holding, the owner of the holding desires
to
use the
holding for purposes other than agriculture, he shall before so
doing, whether
the holding is situate within a town or built upon or not, offer
the
holding
for sale, first to the county council from whom the holding was
purchased,
and secondly to the person or persons (if any) then entitled to
the
lands from
which the holding was originally severed, and sections one
hundred
and twenty-seven to one hundred and thirty of the Lands
Clauses Consolidation
Act, 1845, shall apply as if the owner of the small holding
were the
promoter of the undertaking, and the holding were superfluous
lands
within the
meaning of those sections.
16.
-(1) A county council shall, if practicable, sell or let as small
holdings,
and in accordance with this Act, any land acquired by them for
small holdings,
but, if the council are of opinion that any such land is not
needed,
or is unsuitable, for small holdings, or cannot be sold or let
under the provisions
of this Act, or that some more suitable land is available, they
may
sell or
let the land otherwise than under those provisions, or exchange
the land
for other
land more suitable for small holdings, and may pay or receive
money
for equality
of exchange, and may erect such buildings or execute such other
works as
will in the opinion of the council enable the land to be sold
or let
without loss.
(2)
The council may also, while any sale or lease of a holding is
pending,
temporarily let or manage the holding for such time and in such
a
manner as
they think expedient.
(3)
Sections one hundred and twenty-eight to one hundred and
thirty-
two of the
Land Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845 (relating to the right of
pre-emption
of superfluous lands), shall apply upon any sale in pursuance
of
this section
before any such buildings or works as aforesaid are erected or
executed
on the land proposed to be sold, but, save as aforesaid, the provisions
of the Lands
Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845, with respect to the sale of
superfluous
lands shall not apply.
17.
-(1) A county council shall not take any proceedings under the
provisions of
this Act relating to small holdings whereby the annual charge
for
the time
being on the county fund, for the purposes of those provisions
and of
any enactment
repealed by this Act, including the annual payments in respect
of the loans
raised for those purposes, is, in the opinion of the council,
likely
to exceed
in any one year the amount produced by a rate of a penny in the
pound, and,
where the said charge at any time is equal or nearly equal to
that amount,
no further land shall be purchased for small holdings until the
charge
has been
decreased so as to admit of the further purchase without the charge
exceeding
the said amount.
(2)
For the purposes of this section, the expression "charge"
means
the net
charge on the county fund calculated in accordance with regulations
made by
the Local Government Board after taking into account all receipts
from or
on account of small holdings or otherwise under the provisions
of this
Act relating
to small holdings.
18.
A county council may make arrangements with the council of any
borough
or urban district in the county for the exercise by the council
of that
borough
or district, as agents for the county council, on such terms and
subject
to such conditions as may be agreed on, of any powers of the county
council
in respect of the acquisition, adaptation, and management of small
holdings
for the borough or district, and the council of the borough or
district
may,
as part of the arrangement, undertake to pay the whole or any
part of the
loss (if
any) incurred in connexion with those small holdings, and any
sum
payable
in pursuance of any such undertaking shall be defrayed as part
of the general
expenses of the council in the execution of the Public Health
Acts.
Loans by County Councils
to Tenants purchasing Small Holdings
19. -(1) Where a tenant of a small holding has agreed with his
landlord
for the purchase
of the holding, the county council of the county in which the
holding or any
part of it is situate may, if they think fit, advance to the tenant
on security
of the holding an amount not exceeding four-fifths of the purchase
money thereof.
(2)
The provisions of this Act with respect to the purchase money
secured
by a charge
on a small holding sold by a county council, and with respect
to
any small
holding so sold, shall apply to an advance made and a holding
purchased
under this section, as if the advance was the purchase money,
save
that the
county council shall not guarantee the title of the purchaser
of the
holding.
(3) No advance shall be made by a county council under this section,
unless
they are
satisfied that the title to the holding is good, that the sale
is made in
good faith,
and that the price is reasonable.
Powers of Board of Agriculture
and Fisheries.
20.
The Board may, if after inquiry they think it advisable to do
so with
a view to
demonstrating the feasibility of the establishment of small holdings
in any locality,
exercise the powers conferred on county councils by the
provisions
of this Act relating to small holdings (except the powers of
acquiring
land compulsorily and of borrowing), and those provisions shall
apply
as if references
to the Board were substituted for references to a county council;
but the
expenses of the Board shall be defrayed out of, and their receipts
paid
into, the
Small Holdings Account, and no part thereof shall be paid out
of
any rate.
21. The
Board may, if they think fit, and subject to regulations made
by the Board
with the approval of the Treasury, repay or undertake to repay
to a county
council, out of the Small Holdings Account, the whole or any part
of the expenses
incurred by the council in proceedings in relation to the
acquisition
of land for the purposes of small holdings, and the amount so
repaid shall
not be treated as part of the costs incurred by the council in
relation
to land
for the purposes of sections seven and nine of this Act, but nothing
in
this section
shall authorise the repayment of any part of any purchase money,
compensation,
or rent payable in respect of the land.
22.
Where the Commissioners acting in default of a county council,
or the Board
for the purpose of demonstrating the feasibility of the
establishment
of small holdings, exercise the powers of a county council
under the
provisions of this Act relating to small holdings, the Board may
appoint
such advisory and managing committees as they think fit, with
such
powers and
duties as may be conferred or imposed on them, and may, with the
consent
of the Treasury, pay out of the Small Holdings Account all reasonable
travelling
and out-of-pocket expenses of the members of committees so
appointed:
Provided
that where the expenses are incurred for the purposes of the
powers exercised
by the Commissioners acting in default of a county council,
those expenses
shall be treated as expenses incurred by the Commissioners
in the exercise
of the powers of the county council.
Part II
Allotments
Provision of allotments
23.
-(1) If the council of any borough, urban district, or parish
are of
opinion
that there is a demand for allotments for the labouring population
in
the borough,
urban district or parish, and that such allotments cannot be obtained
at a reasonable rent and on reasonable conditions by voluntary
arrangement
between the owners of land suitable for such allotments and the
applicants
for the same, the council shall provide a sufficient number
of allotments,
and shall let such allotments to persons belonging to the
labouring
population resident in the borough, district or parish, and desiring
to take
the same.
(2)
On a representation in writing to the council of any borough,
urban
district,
or parish, by any six registered parliamentary electors or ratepayers
resident
in the borough, urban district or parish, that the circumstances
of
the borough,
urban district, or parish are such that it is the duty of the
council
to take
proceedings under this part of this Act therein, the council shall
take
such representation
into consideration.
(3)
For the purpose of this section, the expression "reasonable
rent"
means the
rent, exclusive of rates, taxes, and tithe rentcharge, which a
person taking
an allotment might reasonably be expected to pay, taking one year
with another,
to a landlord, having regard to the value of similar land
in the neighbourhood,
to the extent and situation of allotment, to the expenses of the
adapting
the land to the purposes of the allotment, and to the repairs
and other outgoings
payable by the landlord, and to the cost and risk of collecting
the
rents of
and otherwise managing allotments.
(4)
The duty of a council to provide allotments under this Act
shall not
include
the duty of providing allotments exceeding one acre in extent.
24.
-(1) It shall be the duty of a county council to ascertain the
extent
to which
there is a demand for allotments in the several urban districts
(other
than boroughs)
and rural parishes in the county, or would be a demand if
suitable
land were available, and the extent to which it is reasonably
practicable, having
regard to the provisions of this Act, to satisfy any such demand,
and
for
that purpose to co-operate with such authorities, associations,
and persons
as they
think best qualified to assist them, and take such other
steps as they
think
necessary.
(2)
The county council, if satisfied that the circumstances are such
that
land for
allotments should be acquired by them under this section, shall
pass
a resolution
to that effect, and thereupon the powers and duties of the district
or parish
council under the provisions of this Act relating to allotments
shall
be transferred
from that council to the county council, and the county council,
in substitution
for that council, shall proceed to acquire land in accordance
with this
Act, and otherwise execute this Act in the district or parish:
Provided
that this section shall not effect the property in, or any
powers or
duties of the district or parish council in relation to, any land
which,
before the
passing of the resolution, was acquired by the district or parish
council
under this Act, or any enactment repealed by this Act.
(3)
Where the powers of the district or parish council are, by virtue
of
this section,
transferred to the county council, the following provisions shall
have effect:-
(a)
The provisions of this Act relating to allotments shall apply
with the
modifications
necessary for giving effect to this section :
(b)
The county council may borrow for the purposes of those provisions
subject
to the conditions, in the manner, and on the security of the rate,
subject
to, in, and on the security of which the district or parish council
might
have borrowed
under those provisions. The council shall have power to
charge
the rate
with repayment of the principal and interest of the loan, and
the loan
with the interest
thereon shall be repaid by the district or parish council in like
manner,
and the charge shall have the like effect, as if the loan were
lawfully
raised and
charged on that rate by the district or parish council :
(c)
The county council shall keep separate accounts of all receipts
and
expenditure
under this section :
(d)
All sums received by the county council in respect of any land
acquired
under this
section or the corresponding provision of any enactment repealed
by this
Act, otherwise than from any sale or exchange, in so far as they
are not required
for the payment of expenses incurred by them in respect of such
land,
shall be
paid to the district or parish council :
(e)
The county council may delegate to the district or parish council
any
powers under
this Act relating to the management of the allotments, and the
letting
and use thereof, and the recovery of the rent and of possession
thereof;
and, subject
to the terms of the delegation, all expenses and receipts arising
in the exercise
of the powers so delegated shall be paid and dealt with as
expenses
and receipts of the district or parish council under this Act
:
(f)
The county council, on the request of the district or parish council,
may, by
order under their seal, transfer to that council all or any of
their
powers,
duties, property, and liabilities vested in and imposed on the
council by virtue
of this section or the corresponding provision of any enactment
repealed
by this
Act, as regards the district or parish, and the property so transferred
shall be
deemed to have been acquired by that council under this Act, and
that
council
shall act accordingly.
(4)
If the Board are, in relation to any urban district (other than
a
borough)
or rural parish, satisfied, after holding a local inquiry at which
the
county council
and the council of the district or parish, and such other persons
as the person
holding the inquiry may in his discretion think fit to allow,
shall
be permitted
to appear and be heard, that the county council have failed to
fulfil their
obligations under this section, the Board may by order transfer
to
the Commissioners
all or any of the powers of the county council under this
section
in relation to the district or parish, and this section shall
apply as if references
to the Commissioners were substituted for references to the
county council
and with such other adaptations as may be made by the order.
Powers of Councils in relation to the provision
of allotments.
25.
-(1) The council of a borough, urban district, or parish may,
for the
purpose
of providing allotments, by agreement purchase or take on lease
land,
whether
situate within or without their borough, district, or parish.
(2)
If a council are unable to acquire by agreement. And on reasonable
terms, suitable
land for the purpose of allotments, they may acquire the land
compulsorily
in accordance with the provisions of this Act relating to
compulsory
acquisition of the land.
(3)
A council shall not under this Act acquire land for allotments
save at
such price
or rent that in their opinion all expenses, except such expenses
as are incurred
in making roads to be used by the public, incurred by them in
acquiring
the land and otherwise in relation to the allotments, may reasonably
be expected
to be recouped out of the rents obtained in respect thereof.
26.
-(1) The council of a borough, urban district, or parish may improve
any land
acquired by them for allotments and adapt the same for letting
in
allotments,
by draining, fencing, and dividing the same, acquiring approaches,
making roads
and otherwise, as they think fit, and may from time to time do
such things
as may be necessary for maintaining such drains, fences, approaches,
and roads, or otherwise for maintaining the allotments in a
proper condition.
(2)
The council may also adapt land for allotments by erecting buildings
and making
adaptations of existing buildings, but so that not more than one
dwelling-house
shall be erected for occupation with any allotment of less than
one acre.
27.
-(1) The rents of the allotments shall be fixed at an amount not
less
than such
as may reasonably be expected to ensure the council providing
the
allotments
from loss; but in calculating such loss any expenses incurred
in an
unsuccessful
attempt to acquire land for allotments shall be excluded and,
subject
as aforesaid, such rents may be from time to time charged as are
reasonable,
having regard to the agricultural value of the land, and not more
than a quarter's
rent shall by required to be paid in advance in any case where
it is deemed
necessary by the council to require the payment of rent in
advance.
(2)
The council providing the allotments shall, for the purposes of
all rates
and taxes,
and all tithe rentcharge payable by an occupier, be deemed to
be
the occupiers
of the allotments which are let, but they shall cause the sums
from time to
time paid by way of such rates, taxes, and tithe rentcharge in
respect of the
allotments to be apportioned among them, and cause the sum so
apportioned in
respect of each allotment to be certified to the tenant thereof,
and such sum
shall be added to the rent otherwise payable by the tenant in
respect of such
allotment, and shall be deemed to be part of the rent, and be
recoverable accordingly:
Provided
that for the purpose of the parliamentary franchise, and the
municipal and
all other local franchises, the tenants shall notwithstanding
this
provision
be deemed to be the occupiers, and such rates shall be deemed
to
have been
paid by them.
(3)
One person shall not hold any allotment or allotments acquired
under
this Part
of this Act, or any enactment hereby repealed, exceeding five
acres:
Provided
that any part of the land acquired by a council for the purposes
of allotments
which exceeds five acres may be adapted for letting and let as
an allotment,
if the county council are satisfied by the council that it is
convenient
and desirable that it should so be let and consent to such
letting accordingly.
(4)
An allotment shall not be sublet.
(5)
If at any time an allotment cannot be let in accordance with the
provisions
of this act and the rules made thereunder, the same may be let
to
any person
whatever at the best annual rent which can be obtained for
the
same, without
any premium of fine, and on such terms as may enable
possession
thereof to be resumed within a period not exceeding twelve
months if
it should at any time be let under the provisions aforesaid.
(6)
A council shall have the same power of letting one or more allotments
to persons
working on a co-operative system or to an association formed
for the
purposes
of creating or promoting the creation of allotments as may be
exercised
as respects small holdings by a county council.
28.
-(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, a borough, urban district,
or parish
council may make such rules as appear to be necessary or proper
for regulating
the letting of allotments under this Act, and for preventing any
undue preference
in the letting thereof, and generally for carrying the
provisions
of this Part of this Act into effect.
(2)
Rules under this section may define the persons eligible to be
tenants
of allotments,
the notices to be given for the letting thereof, the size of the
allotments,
the conditions under which they are to be cultivated. And the
rent
to be paid
for them.
(3)
All such rules shall make provision for reasonable notice to be
given to
a tenant
of any allotment of the determination of his tenancy.
Rules under this section shall not be of any force unless and
until they
have been
confirmed by the Board in like manner and subject to the like
provisions
as in the case of bylaws required to be confirmed by the Local
Government
Board under the Public Health Acts.
(4)
Rules for the time being in force under this section shall be
binding on
all persons
whatsoever; and the council shall cause them to be from time to
time made
known, in such manner as the council think fit, to all persons
interested,
and shall cause a copy thereof to be given gratis to any inhabitant
of the of
the district or parish demanding the same.
29.
-(1) The council of a borough, urban district, or parish may from
time to time
appoint, and, when appointed, remove allotment managers of
land acquired
by the council for allotments, and the allotment managers shall
consist
either partly of members of the council and partly of other persons,
or
wholly of
other persons, so that in either case such other persons be persons
residing
in the locality and contributing to the rate out of which the
expenses
of the council
under this Act are paid.
(2) The proceedings and powers of allotment managers shall be
such as,
subject
to the provisions of this Act, may be directed by the council;
the
allotment
managers may be empowered by the council to do anything in
relation
to the management of the allotments which the council are authorised
to do and
to incur expenses to such amount as the council authorise, and
any expenses
properly so incurred shall be deemed to be expenses of the
council
under this
Act.
30.
-(1) The rent for an allotment let by a council in pursuance of
this
Act, and
the possession of such an allotment in the case of any notice
to quit,
or failure
to deliver up possession thereof as required by law, may be
recovered
by the council as landlords, in the like manner as in any other
case
of landlord
and tenant.
(2)
If the rent for any allotment is in arrear for not less than forty
days, or
if it appears
to the council that the tenant of an allotment not less than three
months after
the commencement of the tenancy thereof has not duly observed
the rules
affecting the allotment made by or in pursuance of this Act, or
is
resident
more than one mile out of the borough, district or parish for
which
the allotments
are provided, the council may serve upon the tenant, or, if he
is residing
out of the borough, district or parish, leave at his last known
place of
abode in
the borough, district or parish, or fix in some conspicuous manner
on the allotment,
a written notice determining the tenancy at the expiration
of one month
after the not has been so served or affixed, and thereupon the
tenancy shall
be determined accordingly:
Provided that in every such case the council in default of agreement
between
the incoming and outgoing tenant shall on demand pay to the tenant
whose tenancy is
so determined any compensation due to him as on outgoing
tenant,
and the amount of such compensation shall be assessed by an
arbitrator
appointed by the council or, if the tenant so elect, either by
an
arbitrator
appointed under theAllotments and Cottage Gardens Compensation
for Crops
Act, 1887, or under theAgricultural Holdings Act, 1908.
(3)
Upon recovery of an allotment from any tenant, the court directing
the
recovery
may stay delivery of possession until payment of the compensation
(if any)
due to the outgoing tenant has been made of secured to the satisfaction
of the court.
31
-(1) The council of a borough, urban district, or parish shall
cause a
list to
be kept showing the particulars of the tenancy, acreage, and rent
of
every allotment
let, and of the unlet allotments.
(2)
The list shall be open to inspection of ratepayers in the borough,
district
or parish
for which the allotments have been provided, in such a manner
as
may be provided
by the rules made under this Act by the council, and any
ratepayer
of such borough, district or parish, without paying any fee, may
take copies
of or extracts from the list.
32
-(1) Where the council of any borough, urban district or parish
are
of opinion
that any land acquired by them for allotments or any part thereof
is not needed
for the purpose of allotments, or that some more suitable land
is available,
they may, with the sanction of the county council, sell or let
such
land otherwise
than under the provisions of this Act, or exchange the land for
other land
more suitable for allotments, and may pay or receive money for
equality
of exchange.
(2)
The proceeds of a sale under this Act of land acquired for allotments,
and any
money received by the council on any such exchange as aforesaid
by
way of equality
of exchange, shall be applied in discharging, either by way of
a sinking
fund or otherwise, the debts and liabilities of the council in
respect of
land acquired
by the council for allotments, or in acquiring, adapting, and
improving
other land for allotments, and any surplus remaining may be applied,
for any
purpose for which capital money may be applied, and which is approved
by the Local
Government Board; and the interest thereon (if any) and any
money received
from the letting of the land may be applied in acquiring other
land for
allotments, or shall be applied in like manner as receipts from
allotments
under this Act are applicable.
(3)
Sections one hundred and twenty eight to one hundred and thirty
two of
the Lands
Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845, (relating to the right of pre-
emption
of superfluous lands), shall apply on any sale in pursuance of
this
section
of any land, but, save as aforesaid, the provisions of the Land
Clauses Consolidation
Act, 1845, with respect to the sale of superfluous lands shall
not apply.
33.
-(1) The allotment wardens under the Inclosure Acts, 1845 to 1882,
having the
management of any land appropriated under those Acts either
before or
after the passing of this Act for allotments or field gardens
for the labouring
poor of any place, may, by agreement with the council of the borough,
urban district
or parish, within whose borough, district or parish that place
is
wholly or
partly situate, transfer the management of that land to the council,
upon such
terms and conditions as may be agreed upon with the sanction,
as
regards
the allotment wardens, of the Board, and thereupon the land shall
vest
in the
council.
(2)
All trustees within the meaning of the Allotments Extension Act,
1882,
required
or authorised by that or any other Act to let lands in allotments
to
cottagers,
labourers, journeymen, or others in any place, may, if they think
it
fit, in
lieu of letting the land in the manner provided by the said Acts,
sell or
let the
land in manner provided by the said Acts, sell or let the land
to the
council
of the borough, urban district, or parish in which such place
is wholly or partly
situate, upon such terms as may be agreed upon, with the sanction,
as
regards
the trustees, of the Charity Commissioners or the Board of Education,
as
the case may require.
(3)
Where, as respects any rural parish, any Act constitutes any persons
wardens
of allotments, or authorises or requires the appointment or election
of any wardens,
committee, or managers for the purpose of allotments, the
powers and
duties of the wardens, committee, or managers shall, subject to
the provisions
of this Act, be exercised and performed by the parish council,
or, in the
case of a parish not having a parish council, by persons appointed
by the parish
meeting, and it shall not be necessary to make the said
appointment
or to hold the said election.
(4)
The provisions of this Act relating to allotments shall apply
to land
vested in,
or the management whereof has been transferred to, a council under
this section
or the corresponding provision of any enactment repealed by this
Act in like
manner as if the land had been acquired by the council under the
general
powers of this part of this Act.
Supplemental
34.
-(1) Where it appears to the council of any borough, urban district,
or parish
that, as regards their borough, district or parish, land can be
acquired
for affording common pasture at such price or rent that all expenses
incurred
by the council in acquiring the land and otherwise in relation
to the
land when
acquired may reasonably be expected to be recouped out of the
charges paid
in respect thereof, and that the acquisition of such land is
desirable
in view of the wants and circumstances of the labouring population,
the council
may submit to the council of the county in which the borough,
district,
or parish is wholly or partly situate a scheme for providing such
common pasture.
(2)
The county council, if satisfied of the expediency of such scheme,
may by order
authorise the council which submitted it to carry it into effect,
and, upon
such an order being made, the provisions of this Act relating
to
allotments
shall, with the necessary modifications, apply in like manner
as if "allotments"
in those provisions included common pasture, and "rent"
included
a charge for turning out an animal:
Provided
that the rules made under those provisions may extend to
regulating
the turning out of animals on the common pasture, to defining
the
persons
entitled to turn them out, the number to be turned out, and the
conditions
under which animals may be turned out, and fixing the charges
to
be made
for each animal, and otherwise regulating the common pasture.
35.
-(1) Any room in a public elementary school in respect of which
a
grant is
made out of moneys provided by Parliament may, except where the
room is
being used for educational purposes, be used free of charge for
the
purposes
of this part of this Act by the county council, or, with the consent
of any two
managers, for the purpose of holding public meetings to discuss
any question
relating to allotments under this Act, but any damage done to
the room
and any expense incurred by the persons having control over the
room on
account of its being so used shall be paid by the county council
or
the persons
calling the meeting.
(2)
Nothing in this section shall give any right to hold a public
meeting in
a schoolroom-
(a)
Unless not less than six days before the meeting a notice of the
intention
to hold
the meeting on the day and at the time specified in the notice,
signed
by the persons
calling the meeting, being not less than six in number, and being
persons
qualified to make a representation to the council of a borough,
urban district,
or parish under this part of this Act, has been given, in the
case of a
school provided
by the local education authority to the clerk of that authority,
and in any
other case to one of the managers of the school; or
(b)
if the use of the schoolroom on the said day and at the said time
has
previously
to the receipt of the notice of the meeting being granted for
some
other purpose;
but in that case the clerk or manager, or some one on his
behalf,
shall forthwith, after the receipt of the notice, inform in writing
one
of the persons
signing it that the use of the school has been so granted for
some other
purpose, and name some other day on which the schoolroom can
be used
for the meeting.
(3)
If the persons calling the meeting fail to obtain the use of a
schoolroom
under this
section, they may appeal to the small holdings and allotments
committee
under this Act, and the committee shall forthwith decide the appeal,
and make
such order respecting the use of the room as may seem just.
(4)
Nothing in this section shall affect the powers as to the use
of
schoolrooms
conferred by section four of the Local Government Act, 1894.
36.
The powers as to allotments conferred on borough, urban district,
and parish
councils by this Act may in London be exercised by the London
County Council,
and the provisions of this Act as to allotments shall apply accordingly,
except that, subject to the provisions of this Act, the expenses
shall be
defrayed and money borrowed under and in accordance with the
provisions
of the Local Government Act, 1888.
37.
Such of the provisions of this Part of this Act as require the
sanction
of, submission
to, or order of, a county council shall not apply in the case
of a
county borough.
Part III.
General
Acquisition of land.
38.
For the purpose of the purchase of land by agreement under this
Act by a
council, the Lands Clauses Acts shall be incorporated with this
Act,
except the
provisions of those Acts with respect to the purchase and taking
of land
otherwise than by agreement, and section one hundred and seventy
eight of
the Public Health Act, 1875, shall apply as if the council were
referred
to therein.
39
-(1) Where a council propose to purchase land compulsorily under
this Act,
the council may, subject to the provisions of Part I. of the First
Schedule
to this Act, submit to the Board an order putting in force as
respects
the land
specified in the order the provisions of the Lands Clauses Acts
with
respect
to the purchase and taking of land otherwise than by agreement.
(2)
Where a council propose to hire land compulsorily, the council
may
submit to
the Board an order for the compulsory hiring of the land specified
in the order
for a period not less than fourteen nor more than thirty-five
years, and
the provision of Part I. of the First Schedule to this Act, shall
apply
to the order
in like manner as it applies to an order for compulsory purchase,
with the
substitution of "hiring" for "purchase," and
with the modifications
set out
in Part II. of that Schedule.
(3)
An order under this section shall be of no force unless and until
it is
confirmed
by the Board, and the Board may, subject to the provisions of
the
First Schedule
to this Act, confirm the order either without modification or
subject
to such modifications as they think fit, and an order so confirmed
shall become
final and have effect as if enacted in this Act; and the confirmation
by
the Board
shall be conclusive evidence that the requirements of this Act
have
been complied with,
and that the order has been duly made and is within the
powers
of this Act.
(4)
An order under this section may provide for the continuance of
any
existing
easement or the creation of any new easement over the land
authorised
to be acquired, and every such order shall, if so required by
the
owner of
the land to be acquired, provide for the creation of such new
easements
as are reasonably necessary to secure the continued use and
enjoyment
by such owner and his tenants of all means of access, drainage,
water supply,
and other similar conveniences theretofore used or enjoyed by
them over the
land to be acquired:
Provided
that, notwithstanding anything contained in this subsection, no
new easement
created by or in pursuance of the order over land hired by a council
shall continue
beyond the determination of such hiring.
(5)
In determining the amount of any disputed compensation
under any
such order,
no additional allowance shall be made on account of the purchase
or hiring
being compulsory.
(6)
Where land authorised to be compulsorily hired by an order under
this section
is subject to a mortgage, any lease made in pursuance of the order
by
the mortgagor
or mortgagee in possession shall have the like effect as if it
were a lease
authorised by section eighteen of the Conveyancing and Law of
Property
Act, 1881.
(7)
Where the council proposing to acquire land compulsorily is a
parish
council,
the council shall, instead of themselves making and submitting
to the
Board the
order, represent the case to the county council, and thereupon
the
county council
may on behalf of the parish council, exercise the powers in
relation
to the compulsary purchase or hiring conferred on councils by
this
Act, and
the order shall be carried into effect by the county council,
but the
land shall
be assured or demised to the parish council, and all expenses
incurred
by the county council shall be paid by the parish council:
Provided
that, if the parish council are aggrieved by the refusal of the
county council
to proceed under this section, the parish council may petition
the Board,
and thereupon the Board, after such enquiry as they think fit,
may make
such an order as the county council may have made, and this
subsection
shall apply as if the order had been made by the county council.
(8)
If, after the determination of the amount of the compensation
(including
in the case
of the land hired compulsorily the rent) to be paid to any person
in
respect
of his interest in the land proposed to be compulsorily acquired,
it
appears
to the council that the land cannot be let for small holdings
or
allotments,
as the case may be, at such a rent as will secure the council
from
loss, the
council may at any time within six weeks after the determination
of
the amount
by notice in writing withdraw any notice to treat
served on that
person or
on any other person interested in the land, and in such case any
person on
whom such a notice of withdrawal has been served shall be
entitled
to obtain
from the council compensation for any loss or expenses which he
may have
sustained or incurred by reason or in consequence of the notice
to
treat and
of the notice of withdrawal, and the amount of such compensation
shall, in
default of agreement, be determined by arbitration:
Provided
that in every case in which the notice of withdrawal is given
by
the Commissioners
acting in default of the council all compensation payable
under this
subsection shall be paid out of the Small Holdings Account.
40.
-(1) Any person having power to lease land for agricultural
purposes
for a limited term, whether subject to any consent or conditions
or not,
may, subject to the like consent and conditions (if any), lease
land to
a council
for the for the purposes of small holdings or allotments for a
term not exceeding
thirty-five years, either with or without such right of renewal
as is conferred
by this Act in the case of land hired compulsorily for
those purposes.
(2)
The like powers of leasing may be exercised, in the case of land
belonging
to the Crown, by the Commissioners of Woods, with the consent
of the Treasury,
in the case of land forming part of the possessions of the
Duchy of
Lancaster by deed under the seal of the Duchy in the name of
His Majesty
His heirs and successors, and, in the case of land forming part
of the Duchy
of Cornwall, by the Duke of Cornwall or other persons for the
time being
having power to dispose of land belonging to that Duchy.
(3)
The like powers of leasing may be exercised in the case of glebe
land or
other land
belonging to an ecclesiastical benefice by the incumbent thereof
with consent
of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners alone upon such terms and
conditions
and in such a manner as the Ecclesiastical Commissioners may
approve.
(4)
Where a person having the powers of a tenant for life within the
meaning
of the Settled
Land Acts, 1882 to 1890, sells, exchanges or leases any settled
land to
a county council for the purposes of small holdings, the sale,
exchange, or lease
may be made at such price, or for such consideration, or at such
rent, as, having
regard to the said purposes and to all the circumstances of the
case, is the best
that can be reasonably obtained.
(5)
A person having the powers of a tenant for life within the meaning
of the Settled
Lands Acts, 1882 to 1890, may grant the settled land, or a part
thereof,
to a county council for the purposes of small holdings in perpetuity,
at a fee
farm or other rent secured by condition of re-entry, or otherwise
as
may be agreed
upon.
41.
-(1) No land shall be authorised by an order under this Act to
be
acquired
compulsorily which at the date of the order forms part of any
park,
garden,
or pleasure ground, or forms part of the home farm attached to
and
usually
occupied with a mansion house, or is otherwise required for the
amenity
or convenience of any dwelling house, or which is woodland not
wholly surrounded
by or adjacent to land acquired by a council under this Act,
or which
at that date is the property of any local authority or has been
acquired
by any corporation or company for the purposes of a railway, dock,
canal, water,
or other public undertaking, or is the site of an ancient monument
or other
object of archaeological interest.
(2)
A council in making,and the Board in confirming, an order for
the
compulsory
acquisition of land shall have regard to the extent of land held
or
occupied
in the locality by any owner or tenant and to the convenience
of
other property
belonging to or occupied by the same owner or tenant, and shall,
so far as
practicable, avoid taking an undue or inconvenient quantity of
land
from any
one owner or tenant, and for that purpose, where part only of
a holding
is taken,
shall take into consideration the size and character of the existing
agricultural
buildings not proposed to be taken which were used in connection
with the
holding, and the quantity and nature of the land available for
occupation
therewith, and shall also, so far as practicable, avoid displacing
any considerable
number of agricultural labourers or others employed on or
about the
land.
(3)
No holding of fifty acres or less in extent, nor any part of any
such
holding,
shall be authorised by an order under this Act to be acquired
compulsorily
for the purposes of small holdings or allotments.
42.
-(1) The powers of a council to acquire land for small holdings
or
allotments
shall, subject to the restrictions by this Act imposed, include
power to acquire
land for the purpose of attaching to small holdings or
allotments
provided by the council rights of grazing and other similar rights
over the
land so acquired, and to acquire for that purpose stints and other
alienable
common rights of grazing.
(2) Any rights created or acquired by the council under
this section
shall be
attached to the small holdings or allotments in such a manner
and
subject
to such regulations as the council think expedient.
(3)
Where any right of grazing, sheepwalk, or other similar right
is
attached
to land acquired by a county council for the purposes of small
holdings,
the council may attach any share of the right to any small holding
in such
a manner and subject to such regulations as they think expedient.
43.
Where a labourer, who has been regularly employed on any
land acquired
by a county council for small holdings, proves to the
satisfaction
of the county council that the effect of the acquisition was to
deprive
him of his employment, and that there was no employment of an
equally
beneficial character available to him in the same locality, the
county
council
may pay to him such compensation as they think just for his loss
of employment
or for his expenses in moving to another locality, and any sum
so paid
shall be treated as part of the expenses of the acquisition of
the land.
Provisions affecting Land acquired.
44.
-(1) Where a council has hired land compulsorily for small holdings
or allotments,
the council may, by giving to the landlord not more than two
years nor
less than one year before the expiration of the tenancy notice
in
writing,
renew the tenancy for such term, not being less than fourteen
nor more
than thirty-five
years, as may be specified in the notice, and at such rent, in
default
of agreement, may be determined by valuation by a valuer appointed
by the Board,
but otherwise on the same terms and conditions as the original
lease, and
so from time to time:
Provided
that, if on any such notice being given, the landlord proves
to the satisfaction
of the Board that any land included in the tenancy is required
for the
amenity or convenience of any dwelling-house, then such land shall
be excluded
from the renewed tenancy.
(2) In assessing the rent to be paid under this section the valuer
shall not
take into
account any increase in the value of the holding -
(a)
due to improvements in respect of which the council would have
been
entitled
to compensation, if instead of renewing the tenancy the council
had
quitted
the land on the determination of the tenancy: or
(b)
due to any use to which the land might otherwise be put during
the
renewed
term, being a use in respect of which the landlord is entitled
to
resume possession
of the land under this Act; or
(c)
due to the establishment by the council of other small holdings
or
allotments in
the neighbourhood,
or
any depreciation in the value of the land in respect of which
the landlord
would have
been entitled to compensation if the council had so quitted the
land
as aforesaid.
45.
A county council may sell or let to a borough, urban district,
or
parish council
for the purpose of allotments any land acquired by them for
small holdings,
and a borough, urban district, or parish council may sell or
let to the
county council for the purpose of small holdings any land acquired
by them
for allotments. And the provisions of the Land Clauses Acts with
respect
to the sale of superfluous land shall not apply on any such sale.
46.
-(1) Where land has been hired by a council compulsorily for small
holdings
or allotments, and the land or any part thereof at any time during
the tenancy
thereof by the council is shown to the satisfaction of the Board
to be required
by the landlord to be used for building, mining, or other
industrial
purposes, or for roads necessary therefor, it shall be lawful
for the landlord
to resume possession of the land or part thereof upon giving to
the
council
twelve months' previous notice in writing of his intention so
to do; and,
if a part
only of the land is resumed, the rent payable by the council shall
be as
from the
date of resumption be reduced by such sum as in default of agreement
may be determined
by valuation by a valuer appointed by the Board.
(2)
Where the land has been hired compulsorily by the Commissioners
acting in
default of a county council, any question as to the right of the
landlord
to resume
possession of the land or any part thereof under this section
shall be determined
by an arbitrator appointed by the Lord Chief Justice of England.
47
-(1) Where a council has let a small holding or allotment to any
tenant,
the tenant shall as against the council have the same rights with
respect
to compensation for the improvements mentioned in Part I. of the
Second Schedule
to this Act as he would have if the holding had been a
holding
to which section forty-two of the Agricultural Holdings Act, 1908,
applied.
Provided
that the tenant shall not be entitled to compensation in respect
of any such
improvement if executed contrary to an express prohibition in
writing
by the council affecting either the whole or any part of the holding
or allotment;
but, if the tenant feels aggrieved by such prohibition, he may
appeal to
the Board, who may confirm, vary, or annul the prohibition,
and
the decision
of the Board shall be final.
(2)
Where land has been hired by a council for small holdings or
allotments,
the council shall (subject in the case of land hired by agreement
to any agreement
to the contrary) be entitled at the determination of the
tenancy
on quitting the land to compensation under the Agricultural Holdings
Act, 1908,
for any improvement mentioned in Part I. of the Second Schedule
to this
Act, and for any improvement mentioned in Part II. of that Schedule
which was
necessary or proper to adapt the the land for small holdings or
allotments,
as if the land were a holding to which section forty-two
of the Agricultural
Holdings Act, 1908, applied, and the improvements mentioned in
Part II.
of the said Schedule were improvements mentioned in Part III.
of
the First
Schedule to the Agricultural Holdings Act. 1908:
Provided
that, in the case of land hired compulsorily, the amount of the
compensation
payable to the council for those improvements shall be such
sum as fairly
represents the increase (if any) in the value to the landlord
and his
successors in title of the holding due to those improvements.
(3)
The tenant of an allotment to which Part II. of this Act applies
may,
if he so
elects, claim compensation for improvements under the Allotments
and Cottage
Gardens Compensation for Crops Act, 1887, instead of under
the Agricultural
Holdings Act, 1908, as amended by this section,
notwithstanding
that the allotment exceeds two acres in extent.
(4)
A tenant of any small holding or allotment may, before the expiration
of his tenancy,
remove any fruit and other trees and bushes planted or
acquired
by him for which he has no claim for compensation, and may remove
any toolhouse,
shed, greenhouse, fowl-house, or pigsty built or acquired by
him for
which he has no claim for compensation.
48.
In the case of glebe land or other land belonging to an
ecclesiastical
benefice hired by a council for the purposes of small holdings
or allotments:
(1)
The provisions of the Ecclesiastical Dilapidations Act, 1871,
shall not
during the
continuance of the tenancy be applicable to the buildings upon
the
land:
(2)
At the determination of the tenancy, on the council quitting the
land,
or at any
time within twelve months thereafter, the incumbent of the benefice
to which
the land belongs may apply to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners
for
their consent
to the removal of any buildings which have been erected on the
land for
the purpose of adapting the land for small holdings or allotments,
and,
on proof
to the satisfaction of the Commissioners that any such buildings
are useless,
and that it is to the interest of the benefice that they should
be
removed,
the incumbent may, with the consent of the Commissioners, and
subject
to such directions as they may give, pull down any such buildings
and dispose
of the materials thereof, and any proceeds shall be paid to the
Commissioners
to be by them applied to the improvement of the benefice in
such manner
as the Commissioners may direct.
Co-operative Societies,
&c.
49.
-(1) A county council may promote the formation or extension of,
and may,
subject to the provisions of this section, assist, societies on
a
Co-operative
basis, having as for their object, or one of their objects, the
provision
or profitable working of small holdings or allotments, whether
in
relating
to the purchase of requisites, the sale of produce, credit banking,
or insurance,
or otherwise, and may employ as their agents for the purpose of
any such
society as is mentioned in subsection (4) of this section.
(2)
The county council, with the consent of, and subject to regulations
made by,
the Local Government Board, may for the purpose of assisting a
society
make grants or advances to the society, or guarantee advances
made
to the society,
upon such terms and conditions as to rate of interest and
repayment
or otherwise, and on such security, as the council think fit.
(3)
Where the Board themselves provide small holdings under the provisions
of this Act, they may, with respect to and such society carrying
on business
or intending to carry on business in the neighbourhood of those
small
holdings,
exercise the powers of a county council under this section, and
the
provisions
of this section shall apply accordingly, except that the references
to
the Treasury
shall be substituted for references to the Local Government Board,
and that the expanses and receipts shall be paid out of and into
the
Small Holdings
Account.
(4)
The Board with the consent of the Treasury may out of the Small
Holdings
Account make grants, upon such terms as the Board may
determine,
to any society having as its object or one of its objects the
promotion
of co- operation in connection with the cultivation of small
holdings
or allotments.
Small Holdings and Allotments Committees.
50.
-(1) Every county council shall establish a small holdings and
allotments
committee, consisting either wholly or partly of members of the
council
but the members of the council shall be a majority, and all matters
relating
to the exercise and performance by the council of their powers
and
duties under
Act (except the power of raising a rate or borrowing money)
shall stand
referred to the small holdings and allotments committee, and the
council
before exercising any such powers shall, unless in their opinion
the
matter is
urgent, receive and consider the report of the small holdings
and allotments
committee with respect to the matter in question, and the council
may also
delegate to the small holdings and allotments committee, with
or
without
restrictions or conditions, as they think fit, their powers under
this
Act except
the power of raising a rate or borrowing money.
(2)
The small holdings and allotments committee may delegate any of
their powers
to sub-committees, consisting either wholly or partly of members
of the committee,
and in appointing any sub-committee to which is committed
the powers
of management of small holdings shall have regard to the
advisability
of including amongst the members of the sub-committee members
of the councils
of the boroughs, urban districts, or parishes in which the
holdings
are situate, or for which they are provided, and other persons
acquainted
with the needs and circumstances of the area for which the
sub-committee
act.
(3)
Where any receipts or payments of money under this Act are entrusted
by the county
council to the small holdings and allotments committee, or any
sub-committee
thereof, the accounts of those receipts and payments shall be
accounts
of the county council, and made up and audited accordingly.
(4)
This section, so far as relates to small holdings, shall apply
to the
council
of a county borough in like manner as it applies to a county council,
but, so
far as it relates to allotments and sub-committees, shall not
apply to
the council
of a county borough, without prejudice however to the power of
such a council
to appoint their small holdings committee, if duly qualified,
to be allotment
managers in pursuance of Part II, of this Act.
Expenses and borrowing
51.
-(1) For the purpose of this Act, "The Small Holdings Account,"
opened at
the Bank of England under the Small Holdings and Allotments
Act,
1907, shall be continued
(2)
There shall be paid to this account:-
(a)
such money as may from time to time be provided by Parliament
towards
defraying the costs and expenses of the Board directed by this
Act to be
paid out of the Small Holdings Account; and
(b)
all sums received by the Board and directed by this Act to be
paid
into the
Small Holdings Account.
(3)
The costs and expenses of the Board directed by this Act to be
paid
out of the
Small Holdings Account shall be paid by the Board out of the
money standing
to that account.
(4)
At the end of every financial year, accounts of the receipts and
expenditure
of the Small Holdings Account shall be made up in such
form and
with such particulars as may be directed by the Treasury, and
shall
be audited
by the Comptroller and Auditor-General as public accounts in
accordance
with such regulations as the Treasury may make, and shall be
laid before
Parliament, together with his report thereon.
(5)
Payments out of, and into, the Small Holdings Account, and all
other
matters
relating to the account, and to the money standing to the credit
of the account,
shall be paid and regulated in such manner as the Treasury direct.
52.
-(1) A county council may borrow money for the purposes of the
provisions
of this Act relating to small holdings and for the purpose of
making
grants or
advances to co-operative societies in accordance with the Local
Government
Act, 1888, or, if the council of a county borough, with the Public
Health Acts,
except that any money so borrowed shall notwithstanding
anything
in either of those Acts, be repaid within such period,
not exceeding:-
(a)
where the purpose for which the money is borrowed is the purchase
of land,
eighty years; and
(b)
in any other case, fifty years,
as the council
with the consent of the Local Government Board, determine in
each case
: Provided that money so borrowed shall not be reckoned as part
of the total
debt of a county for the purpose of section sixty-nine, subsection
two, of
the Local Government Act, 1888.
(2)
The Public Works Loans Commissioners may, in manner provided
by the Public
Works Loans Act, 1875, lend any money which may be borrowed
by a county
council for such purposes as aforesaid :
Provided
that:-
(a)
the loan shall be made at the minimum rate allowed for the
time
being for
loans out of the local loans fund ; and
(b)
if the Local Government Board make a recommendation to that
effect,
the period for which the loan is made by the Public Works Loans
Commissioners
may exceed the period allowed under the Public Works
Loans Act,
1875, and the Acts amending that Act, but the period shall not
exceed the
period recommended by the Local Government Board, nor,
where the
purpose of the loan is the purchase of land, eighty years, or
in
any other case
fifty years; and
(c)
as between loans for different periods, the longer duration of
the
loan shall
not be taken as a reason for fixing a higher rate of interest.
(3)
Any capital money received by a county council in payment or
discharge
of purchase money for land sold by them, or in repayment of an
advance
made by them, shall subject to the provisions of this Act, be
applied,
with the
sanction of the Local Government Board, either in repayment of
debt
or for any
other purpose for which capital money may be applied.
(4)
The expenses incurred by a county council of a county borough
under
the provisions
of this Act relating to small holdings shall be defrayed out of
the borough
fund or borough rate, and any money borrowed by such council
shall be
borrowed on the security of the borough fund or borough rate.
53.
-(1) All expenses incurred by the council of a borough, urban
district,
or parish under the provisions of this Act relating to allotments,
including
allowances to officers of the council for duties under those provisions,
and any
sums under those provisions repayable by a district or parish
council
to a county
council acting in their default, shall be defrayed:-
(a)
in the case of a borough or urban district council, as part
of the general expenses
of their execution of the Public Health Acts; and
(b)
in the case of a parish council, as part of the expenses of the
council.
(2)
All expenses incurred by the county council in executing the said
provisions
in any district or parish on default of a district or parish council,
or incurred
by the county council in or incidentally to a local inquiry under
those
provisions, shall be paid in the first instance out of the county
fund as expenses
for general county purposes, and, unless defrayed out of moneys
received
by the council in respect of any land acquired under those provisions
otherwise
than by sale or exchange, or out of money borrowed as before in
this Act
mentioned, shall, when the powers and duties of the district or
parish
council
under those provisions are transferred to the county council in
pursuance
of this Act, be repaid to the county council as a debt by the
district
or parish
council.
(4)
The council of a borough, urban district or parish may borrow
for the purposes
of acquiring, improving, and adapting land for allotments:-
(a)
in the case of a borough or urban district council, in like manner
and
subject
to the like conditions as for the purposes of the Public Health
Acts;
and
(b)
in the case of a parish council, under and in accordance with
the
provisions
of the Local Government Act, 1894, but the money borrowed by a
parish council
shall not be reckoned as part of the debt of the parish for the
purpose
of the limitation on borrowing under section twelve of that Act.
(5)
Sections two hundred and forty-two and two hundred and forty-three
of
the Public
Health Act, 1875, relating to loans by the Public Works Loan Commissioners
to a local authority, shall apply to a loan to a borough or urban
district
council under this section, and, with the necessary adaptations,
to a loan
to a parish council under the Local Government Act, 1894, or to
a county council
lending money to a parish council under that Act, where the purpose
for which
the loan is required by the parish council is the acquisition,
improvement
or adaptation
of land under Part II. of this Act, in like manner as if those
sections were
herein re-enacted and in terms made applicable thereto.
54.
-(1) Separate accounts shall be kept of the receipts and expenditure
of a council
under this Act with respect to small holdings or allotments, and
any such
receipts shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, be applicable
to
the purposes
of small holdings or allotments, but not for any other purpose
except with
the consent of the Local Government Board ; and, for the purpose
of the provisions
relating to the audit of accounts, any persons appointed
under this
Act by a council to exercise and perform powers and duties as
to
the management
of allotments shall be deemed to be officers of the council.
(2)
The council of a borough, urban district, or parish shall within
one
month after
the end of every financial year of the council cause an annual
statement,
showing their receipts and expenditure with respect to allotments
for that
year and their liabilities outstanding at the end of that year,
to be
deposited
at some convenient place in the borough, district or parish, and
any ratepayer
may without fee inspect and take copies of the statement.
Supplemental
55.
Any land acquired by the Commissioners under this Act or any enactment
repealed by this Act shall be vested in the Board, but the Board
may at any
time transfer the land to the council at whose expense the land
was acquired,
and shall so transfer the land on payment of all sums due from
the council
in connection therewith, and on proof to the satisfaction of the
Board that
the council are willing to exercise and perform their powers and
duties in
relation thereto.
56.
Anything by this Act required or authorised to be done by or
to the Commissioners
may be done by or to any one such Commissioner,
and any
document purporting to be signed by a Commissioner shall be
received
in evidence without proof of the appointment or handwriting of
the Commissioner.
57.
-(1) The Board and the Small Holdings Commissioners and other
officers
of the Board shall have for the purpose of an inquiry in pursuance
of this
Act the same powers as the Local Government Board and their
inspectors
respectively have for the purpose of an inquiry under the
Public Health
Acts.
(2)
Notices of the inquiries shall be given and published in accordance
with
such general
or special directions as the Board may give.
(3)
A local inquiry by a county council for the purposes of the provisions
of this
Act relating to allotments shall be held by such one or more members
of the small
holdings and allotments committee of the council or by such officer
of the council
or other person as that committee may appoint to hold the inquiry.
58.
-(1) All questions which under this Act are referred to arbitration
shall, unless
otherwise expressly provided by this Act, be determined by a
single arbitrator
in accordance with the Agricultural Holdings (England)
Act, 1908.
(2)
Where an order has been made and confirmed authorising the
compulsory
acquisition of land by the Commissioners acting in default of
a
county council,
the arbitrator or valuer, as the case may be, shall be
appointed
by the Lord Chief Justice of England instead of by the Board.
(3)
The remuneration of an arbitrator or valuer appointed under this
Act
shall be
fixed by the Board.
59.
The Board shall make an annual report to Parliament of their
proceedings,
and of the proceedings of the Commissioners, under this Act,
and also
the proceedings of the several county, borough, and parish councils
under this
Act, and for that purpose every such council shall, before such
date
in every
year as the Board may fix, send to the Board a report of their
proceedings
under this Act during the preceding year.
60.
Nothing in this Act shall affect the rights and obligations under
any
tenancy
created under any enactment repealed by this Act.
61.
-(1) The expression "small holding" means an agricultural
holding
which exceeds
one acre and either does not exceed fifty acres, or, if exceeding
fifty acres
is at the date of sale or letting of an annual value for the purposes
of income
tax not exceeding fifty pounds:
The expression
"allotment" includes a field garden:
The expression
"agriculture" and "cultivation" shall include
horticulture and
the use
of land for any purpose of husbandry, inclusive of the keeping
or
breeding
of live stock, poultry, or bees, and the growth of fruit, vegetables,
and the
like:
The expression
"county" shall mean the area under the authority of
a county
council:
The expression
"county council"shall in relation to small holdings
include the
council
of a county borough, and in its application to a county borough
the
expression
"county fund" shall mean the borough fund or borough
rate:
The expression
"prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made by
the
Board:
The expression
"landlord," in relation to any land compulsorily hired
by a
council,
means the person for the time being entitled to receive the rent
of the
land from
the council.
(2)
In this Act and in the enactments incorporated with this Act the
expression
"land" shall include any right or easement in or over
land.
(3)
For the purposes of this Act, and expenses incurred by a council
in the enfranchisement
of any land acquired by them for small holdings or
allotments,
or in the purchase or redemption of land tax, or any quit rent,
chief rent,
tithe, or other rentcharge, or other perpetual annual sum issuing
out of the
land so acquired, shall be deemed to have been incurred in the
purchase
of the land.
(4)
In this Act references to a parish council shall, in the case
of a rural
parish not
having a parish council, include references to the parish meeting.
(5)
Any notice required by this Act to be served or given may be sent
by registered
post.
62.
The enactments mentioned in the Third Schedule to this Act are
hereby repealed
to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.
Provided
that:-
(a)
nothing in this Act shall affect any order, scheme, draft scheme,
rules, regulations,
report, petition, notice, or other document made, prepared, submitted,
served, or given under any enactment so repealed, but every such
document
shall have effect as if made, prepared, submitted, served, or
given
under this
Act; and
(b)
references in any conveyance, lease, or other document to
any
enactment
so repealed shall have effect as if they had been references to
the
corresponding
provisions of this Act; and
(c)
if any question arises as to whether any power of the Local
Government
Board under the enactments relating to allotments hereby
repealed
was thereby transferred to the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries,
the question
shall be determined by the Local Government Board, whose
decision
shall be final.
63.
-(1) This Act may be cited as the Small Holdings and Allotments
Act,
1908.
(2)
This Act shall come into operation on the first day of January
one
thousand nine hundred and nine.
(3)
This Act shall not extend to Scotland or Ireland.
S C H E D U L E S
FIRST SCHEDULE
Part I.
Provisions as to the Compulsory
Acquisition of Land by a Council
(1) The order shall be in the prescribed form,
and shall contain such provisions as the
Board may prescribe
for the purpose of carrying the order into effect, and of protecting
the
council and the
persons interested in the land, and shall incorporate, subject
to the necessary
adaptations, the
Lands Clauses Acts and section seventy-seven to eighty-five of
the Railways
Clauses
Consolidation Act, 1845, but subject to this modification, that
any question of
disputed compensation
shall be determined by a single arbitrator appointed
by the Board, who
shall be deemed
to be an arbitrator within the meaning of the Lands
Clauses Acts, and the
provisions of
those Acts with respect to arbitration shall, subject to
the provisions of this schedule,
apply accordingly.
(2) The order shall be published by the council in the
prescribed manner, and such notice
shall be given
both in the locality in which the land is proposed to be acquired
and to the
owners, lessees,
and occupiers of that land, as may be prescribed.
(3) If within the prescribed period no objection to the order
has been presented to the
Board by
a person interested in the land, or if every such objection has
been withdrawn, the
Board shall, without
further inquiry, confirm the order, but, if such an objection
has been
presented and
has not been withdrawn, the Board shall forthwith cause a public
inquiry to be
held in the locality
in which the land is proposed to be acquired, and the council
and all persons
interested in the land
and such other persons as the person holding the inquiry
in his discretion
thinks fit to allow shall
be permitted to appear and
be heard at the inquiry.
(4)
Before confirming the order the Board shall consider the report
of the person who held
the inquiry, and all
objections made thereat.
(5)
The arbitrator shall, so far as practicable, in assessing compensation
act on his own
knowledge and experience,
but, subject as aforesaid, at any inquiry or arbitration held
under
this schedule the
person holding the inquiry or arbitration shall hear, by
themselves or their
agents, any authorities
or parties authorised by or under this Act to appear, and
shall hear
witnesses, but
shall not, except in such cases as the Board otherwise direct,
hear council or
expert witnesses.
(6)
The Board may, with the concurrence of the Lord Chancellor, make
rules fixing a scale
of costs to be
applicable on an arbitration under this schedule, and an arbitrator
under this
schedule may, notwithstanding
anything in the Lands Clauses Acts, determine the amount of
costs, and shall have power
to disallow as costs in the arbitration the costs of any witness
whom
he considers to have
been called unnecessarily, and any other costs which he
considers to have
been caused or incurred
unnecessarily.
(7)
In construing. for the purpose of this schedule or any order made
thereunder, any
enactment incorporated
with the order, this Act together with the order shall be deemed
to be
the special Act and
the council shall be deemed to be the promoters of the undertaking.
(8)
Where the land is glebe land or other land belonging to ecclesiastical
benefice the
order shall provide
that sums agreed upon or awarded for the purchase of the land,
or to be paid
by the way of compensation
for the damage to be sustained by the owner by reason of severance
or other injury affecting
the land, shall not be paid as directed by the Lands Clauses Acts,
but
shall be paid to the
Ecclesiastical Commissioners to be applied by them as money paid
to them
upon a sale under the
provisions the Ecclesiastical Leasing Acts of land belonging to
a benefice.
Part II
Provisions as to the Compulsory Hiring of Land by a Council
(1)
The Board shall make regulations for the purpose of carrying the
order into effect and
of protecting
the council and the persons interested in the land, and the order
shall incorporate
such regulations,
together with such provisions of the Lands Clauses Acts and of
sections
seventy-seven to eighty-five
of the Railways Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845, as may, subject
to
the prescribed adaptations,
appear to the Board necessary or expedient for that purpose.
(2)
The order authorising the land to be hired compulsorily shall
determine the terms and
conditions of the hiring
other than the rent, and in particular:-
(a)
shall provide for the insertion in the leases of covenants
by the council to cultivate the
land
in a proper manner and to pay to the landlord at the determination
of the tenancy
on
the council quitting the land compensation for any deprecation
of the land by reason
of
any failure by the council, or any person deriving title under
them, to observe such
covenants,
or by reason of any user of the land by the council or such
person as aforesaid,
and
(unless otherwise agreed) to keep the buildings and premises demised
in repair; and
(b)
shall not authorise the breaking up of pasture unless the
Board are satisfied that it can be
so
broken up without depreciating the value of the land, or
that the circumstances are
such
that small holdings cannot otherwise be successfully cultivated:-
and
(c)
shall not, except with the consent of the landlord, confer
on the council any right to fell
or
cut timber or trees or any right to take, sell, or carry away
any minerals, gravel. sand,
or
clay, except so far as may be necessary or convenient for the
purpose of erecting
buildings
on the land or otherwise adapting the land for small holdings
or allotments,
and
except upon payment of compensation for minerals, gravel,
sand, or clay, so used.
(3)
The determination of:-
(a) The amount of the rent to be paid by the council
for the land compulsorily hired;
(b)
The amount of any other compensation to be paid by the council
to any person entitled
thereto
in respect of the land or any interest therein, or in respect
of improvements
executed
on the land or otherwise; and
(c)
Where part only of a holding held for an unexpired term is
hired, the rent to be paid
for
the residue of the holding during the remainder of that term;
shall
in default of agreement be by valuation by a single valuer appointed
by the Board:
Provided
that, if the land hired is in the occupation of a tenant, he may,
by notice in
writing
served on the council before the determination of his tenancy,
require that any
claim
by him against the council which, under the Agriculture Act, 1908,
might be
referred
to arbitration under that Act, shall be so referred, and in such
case those shall
be
determined by arbitration under that Act and not by
valuation under this Act,
(4)
The valuer, in fixing the rent to be paid for the land compulsorily
hired, shall take into
consideration
the rent (if any) at which the land has been let and the annual
value at
which
the land is assessed for purposes of income tax or rating, the
loss (if any) caused to
the
owner by severance, the terms and conditions of the
hiring (including any reservation
of
sporting or fishing rights), and all other circumstances connected
with the land, but
shall
not make any allowance in respect of any use to which the land
compulsorily hired
might
otherwise be put by the owner during the term of hiring,
being use in respect of
which
the owner during the term of hiring, being a use in respect of
which the owner is
entitled to resume possession of the land under this Act.
(5)
Any compensation awarded to a tenant in respect of any depreciation
of the value to him of
the
residue of his holding caused by the withdrawal from the holding
of the land
compulsorily
hired shall, as far as possible, be provided for by taking
such compensation
into
account in fixing the rent to be paid for the residue of the holding
during the
remainder
of the term for which it is held by the tenant.
(6)
Any person interested in the valuation shall give the valuer all
such assistance,
information,
and explanations as he may require, and shall produce to the valuer,
or give
him
access to, all such books, accounts, vouchers, and other
documents relating to the land
to
be compulsorily hired as he may reasonably require for the purposes
of valuation, and
such
expenses as the valuer certifies to have been properly incurred
by any person in
furnishing
such assistance, information, and explanations, or otherwise,
in relation to the
valuation,
shall be paid by the council.
(7)
On the determination of any tenancy created by compulsory hiring
any questions as to
the
amount due by the council for depreciation shall in default
of agreement be determined
by
arbitration.
SECOND SCHEDULE
IMPROVEMENTS REFERRED TO IN SECTION
FORTY-SEVEN
PART I
(1)
Planting of standard or other fruit trees permanently
set out;
(2)
Planting of fruit bushes permanently set out;
(3)
Planting of strawberry plants;
(4)
Planting of asparagus, rhubarb, and other vegetable crops which
continue
productive for two or more years.
Part II
(1)
Erection, alteration, or enlargement of buildings;
(2)
Formation of silos;
(3)
Laying down of pasture;
(4)
Making and planting of osier beds;
(5)
Making of water meadows or works of irrigation;
(6)
Making of gardens;
(7) Making or improving of roads or bridges;
(8)
Making or improvement of watercourses, ponds, wells, or reservoirs,
or
of works for the application of water power or for supply of water
for
agricultural or domestic purposes;
(9)
Making or removal of permanent fences;
(10)
Planting of hops;
(11)
Planting of orchards or fruit bushes;
(12)
Protecting young fruit trees;
(13)
Reclaiming of waste land;
(14)
Warping or weiring of land;
(15)
Embankments and sluices against floods;
(16)
The erection of wirework in hop gardens;
(17)
Drainage.
THIRD SCHEDULE
| |
Enactments Repealed
|
|
| Session and Chapter |
Short Title
|
Extent of Repeal
|
| 50 & 51 Vict. c. 48. |
The Allotments Act, 1887. |
The whole
Act, except as respects subsections (4) to (8) of section
three so far as they are applied by any other enactment. |
| 53 & 54 Vict. c. 65. |
The Allotments Act, 1890. |
The whole
Act. |
| 55 & 56 Vict. c. 31. |
The Small Holdings Act, 1892. |
The whole
Act, except so far as it relates to Scotland. |
| 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73. |
The Local Government Act,
1894. |
In section
six, subsections (3) and (4). |
| 60 & 61 Vict. c. 65. |
The Land Transfer Act, 1897. |
Section
nineteen |
| 7 Edw. 7. c. 54. |
The Small Holdings and Allotments
Act, 1907. |
The whole
Act. |
