Growing Safely on Your Plot

Please remember it is your responsibility as a plotholder to make sure your plot is safe for you and anyone who visits it.

Here are some simple suggestions to help keep you and others safe:

• Avoid trip hazards wherever possible such as; loose paving slabs, hosepipes left unravelled, tools lying around or uneven surfaces.
• Organise your allotment so that it reduces the need for lifting.
• Do not leave sharp tools lying around.
• Use surfaces that provide a good grip underfoot.
• Avoid your allotment, or the Allotment site, if possible when conditions are icy and/or flooded.
• Make sure your well, if you have one, is securely covered and locked.
• Lock away chemicals such as weedkillers and insecticides. Just because they have the words ‘organic’ or ‘bio’ on them, does not make them safe for children to touch.
• Never leave bonfires or barbecues unattended and make sure the flames are extinguished before leaving plot.
• Never use electrical equipment in wet weather, even when the power is provided by a generator.
• When using electrical equipment always use an RCD (residual current device) to prevent electric shocks. It cuts out the flow of electricity when a cable or flex is cut through.
• Wear safety equipment – such as; goggles, hard hats, gloves, steel toe cap boots and tuck in loose items of clothing – when using machinery.
• Don’t keep piles of rubbish on your allotment.
• If you are in the least bit unsure about the safety of tackling a job, get advice.
• It is a good idea to keep a First Aid Kit on your plot but there are kits around site should you need something. Volunteers regularly check the contents of these kits and replenish when needed but we'd appreciate it, if you when you use something, you let a Committee member know.
• Clean your hands before you eat after working on your plot.

Enjoy your allotment but please be safe!