Rents for Chippenham’s allotments are to rise by nearly 23 per cent, to £70 a year, from September 2015.

The current fee is £57 for a 253 square metre plot and the Chippenham Garden and Allotment Society has asked the town council why the increase has been so large.

Adrian Jones, head of service delivery, said the rate was in keeping with others locally. Wiltshire Council charges £65.78 and Calne town council asks for £75.90.

He said the allotments cost the council £3,734 to run this year and it needed to find ways of reducing the level of subsidy borne by taxpayers who do not have allotments.

Demand for allotments is high, with 52 people waiting Chippenham in November. Waits could be up to a year.

To request a plot, contact membership secretary David Love on (01249) 658467 or email to chippenhamallotments@ googlemail.com