Alric Avenue Allotments occupies a substantial site in New Malden to the West of the southern part of New Malden Golf Course and the A.3 and just to the north of the railway line which forms the main route from London (Waterloo) to Southampton and the West Country. It is bounded on the north side by Cambridge Avenue and by Rosebery Avenue to the west.
The site is divided into 151 plots each approximately ten rods in area and originally formed part of the vast estate of a former Duke of Cambridge whose name is commemorated by the tree lined avenue to the north of the site. The Cambridge Estate, as it was known for hundreds of years, originally occupied the area bounded to the north by Richmond Park, to the west by the eastern aspect of the ancient town of Kingston-upon-Thames, and to the south by the original settlement of Maeldune (Malden), now known as Old Malden. The Eastern boundary of the Cambridge Estate linked with that of another titled landowner and now forms part of the suburban town of Wimbledon.
In the early years of the present century the Cambridge Estate began to be acquired for housing and other development by builders, farmers, and the emerging local authorities. The land which now forms the Allotment site was given to the people of New Malden during the period of the Great War (1914-1918) to be used for gardening purposes the stewardship of the land being vested in what was then known as the Borough of Malden and Combe. Subsequent political rearrangements did away with many of what used to be known as ‘local boroughs’ and they were all amalgamated into what today is known as the Royal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames.
The site was taken into self management by a group of plotholders in the early 1980s who negotiated an original 12 year lease from the Royal Borough which was renewed in 1998 for a further 12 years.
The site continues to flourish and all of the 151 plots are currently let. By far the bulk of the plotholders live locally, no more than a few minutes walk or drive from the site, but there are a few who have been tempted to join us from their homes in Central London and who describe the site as ‘their little place in the country’. The area is fully enclosed and accessible only by means of two padlocked entrances. All subscribing members are issued with keys to the site on payment of a small deposit.
Click here for a site plan.
For an aerial view, a map and a view of Old Malden go to GALLERY
