by Dan Bloom

There is not enough money to replace a fence around an allotment site, despite it being broken into more than 100 times.

An angry plot-holder at Great South in Magpie Hall Road, Chatham, revealed the stark crime figure at a Medway council meeting.

Andrew Birch, 44, claimed that in the last 12 months alone there have been 100 shed break-ins at the site which has 103 plots.

The fence was reportedly condemned in 2000, and only half of it has been replaced since, sparking safety fears.

Mr Birch said after the meeting: “My shed was broken into twice and they took maybe £300 worth of stuff.

"My strimmer was stolen because I got a bit complacent and left it locked in the shed.”

Yet Cllr Howard Doe (Con) told him: “I would like to wave my magic wand and get these repairs done but unfortunately they are very expensive.

“So far we have already spent £32,000 on replacing part of it and we hope to complete the final elements as soon as we have budgetary availability, but of course we’re running a very tight budget this year.”

He added: “Allotments are always a target and while we do our best to work with the police to reduce [crime], we can’t eliminate it.”

Yet Mr Birch, of Magpie Hall Road, said: “Would he say the same thing if we broke into his shed and took all his tools?

“Police have been very good but they’ve been coming in at 2am or 3am. A lot of people have had their sheds done two or three times.”

Fellow plot-holder Tony Mazey, 59, of Chatham Grove, said: “They’re saying they have no money which I think is pretty disgusting.

“If it was a play area it would be sorted but allotments are at the bottom of the ladder all the time.”

Cllr Doe told the meeting the annual fee was only £21.20 a year despite increases, “which I don’t think is unreasonable”.

A police spokesman was unable to provide figures on how many break-ins had been reported, but issued general advice.

It includes chaining large machines together, registering valuables at immobilise.com, marking tools with UV pen and using close shackle padlocks.