Braithwaite Trust inspection 2014.

Prize tomatoes on the Braithwaite Trust allotments

It is the beginning of July and so it is time for the annual allotment inspection in Great Waldingfield carried out by the trustees of the Braithwaite Trust.

It is particularly poignant to be undertaking the task almost on the day of the one hundredth anniversary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the event that started the First World War. This is because the Trust was created by the father of three brothers all of whom died in the conflict.  The Trust, which comprises land held for the benefit of the village, was set up in their memory and has been going ever since.

The Trust Deed  is very clear about the identities of the trustees.  The Chairman must be the vicar, and so Rev. Caroline is in charge!  The Secretary must be the teacher from the school, and we recently welcomed Tina Horsford, pictured left, the new headmistress of Great Waldingfield School to our ranks. The Parish Council Chairman is also included, as is a District Councillor, which is how I became involved.

We made our usual round of both the allotments in Folly Road, and those opposite the village hall.  There were more vegetables and fewer flowers on the plots this year, and on the whole all was in good order, although pigeons have caused worse than usual depradation in some areas.  There was some complaint from some quarters that too much allotment had been set aside for 'environmenally friendly' planting.

The Trust sometimes has money available for small community projects.  It is worth contacting a trustee if you have a project in mind., although just at the moment funds are rather constrained owing to higher than usual water bills.