Gardener must remove barbed wire

Mr Malcolm said he may quit his plots if the thefts continue

A Worcestershire gardener says he has been forced to remove barbed wire he erected to protect his allotment from thieves due to health and safety rules.

Bill Malcolm said he put up a single strand of wire out of "desperation and frustration" after acts of vandalism at Roundhill Allotments in Bromsgrove.

The district council said while it was not illegal, it owned the land and had decided it could injure "other users".

Mr Malcolm said he had complied with the council's wishes.

Sheds have recently been broken into at the allotment and tools and vegetables have been stolen.

When you get correspondence that to the effect well, it might hurt the trespassers, it's a real kick in the teeth Paul Clemons, from Roundhill Allotment Association

Mr Malcolm told BBC News that he found the situation "ridiculous" and if the thefts and vandalism continued, he would give up his plots.

"In May, after the vandalism and my crops were trampled, out of desperation and frustration I put up a single strand of barbed wire on top of my fence," he said.

"The council have informed me that it was our responsibility for the security of our allotments.

"The single strand of barbed wire I have erected obviously contravenes what they consider security we can produce for our allotments and I have got to remove it.

"I find the situation quite ridiculous. In the long term if it continues, I will just have to give the allotment up."

'Extra patrols'

A spokesman for the council said it had "complete sympathy" with Mr Malcolm and want the offenders to be caught but added that it did not believe barbed wire was the answer.

He said it was working with the police and a local community safety team to increase the patrols at the site.

Officials would also speak to allotment holders and look again at security, the spokesman added.

"Allotments should be an open, safe and enjoyable pastime. We do not want allotments that are fenced in by barbed wire - it will destroy their character.

"While barbed wire is not illegal, the allotments are on our land and the council has decided against its use because of the injuries it might cause to other users."

But Paul Clemons, from Roundhill Allotment Association said the council's stance was a "real kick in the teeth".

"Perhaps it is a symptom of the society in which we live, a litigious society.

"But when you get correspondence that to the effect well, it might hurt the trespassers, it's a real kick in the teeth.

"There seems to be no protection for the allotment holder."

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Barbed wire ban at allotment