To deny neighbour access to render extension?

I have no idea about legal papers but you do need to have a conversation with your neihhbour and the project manager/foreman about what exactly is entailed. Eg what needs to be moved fence/plants/furniture; whether they will provide temporary fencing to make sure your dog us contained, how long it will take and also what will be done if they damage yiur property. And lots of photos of the area while it's being planned, then immediately before, during and after.

I can empathise totally with the OP. I was in a similar situation years ago, and had the worst inconsiderate neighbours ever. 'Two wrongs don't make a right'! Consider allowing them access, but under your terms only. Would be my advice. I believe by allowing them access, it will cause you less stress in the long run. x

But the neighbours themselves havn't been "good neighbours" by building the extension without informing the OP and leaving it to the last minute to ask for the rendering making it a fait accompli. I think the neighbours have shown their true colours already!

Yes, delay it to late Autumn when your plants/flowers will have stopped flowering and need cutting back anyway for Winter. If you allow work over the Summer, your entire plant/flowers in that area will be ruined for the rest of the Summer. Also insist on replacing any plants that they damage or destroy on a like for like basis, in terms of size etc. Don't let them get away with planting cheap £5 tiny plants from a supermarket when "like for like" mature plants are more likely to be £50 each from a proper garden centre/nursery.

Just let them have access. It will put you in good light as being helpful. Also, you may need your neighbours help you in the future x

I’d agree but when it’s convenient for you. Perhaps when you are on holiday or in winter when you are far less likely to use the garden

and insist they put everything back.

Agree to this, but when it suits you.
So maybe not in the school holidays, for example.
Have them agree a timeline and that any damage will be immediately repaired and at their cost.
At least they asked. Our neighbours got their builders to come on to our land to do some cementing on their house, whilst we were at work. They thought we wouldn’t notice, but we have discreet CCTV at the entrance to our back garden! They then pretended they didn’t realise their builders were in our garden for most of the day!

Agree.

It's too late now, the extension has been built. But yes, permitted development has no bearing on the requirement for a party wall agreement.

The council won't be interested.

Legally there is no way to enforce the neighbour getting a party wall agreement. It is ridiculous.

I have been there and have a whole wardrobe of expensive t shirts.

All the people saying a party wall agreement is needed.

Not necessarily. If the foundations for the extension are not being dug deeper than OP’s foundations, then as they are not building onto the boundary (albeit only by millimetres) then there is no need to have a party wall agreement, although it is probably good practice to have one anyway. But they may not have done anything wrong by not having one.

Just let them render the wall, OP. It really won’t take them long at all, and the end result will be far better than looking at bare breeze blocks.

The neighbours have been petty and nasty by not telling op they were building an extension and not getting a PWA. They have shown that they are dishonest and have no respect for OP or her property.
It is clear that they will not care if they cause damage to her property.
I would assume there are no building regs either.

I would send them back a note saying you are happy for them to do it but not over the summer months and that you will need to agree on dates, times and duration of the access with written agreement that the fence and your side of the boundary will be made good to exactly how they were before works commenced. You hold all the aces and they will have to agree. I certainly wouldn’t agree to the work happening during the summer period when you most need and want to use your garden.

Honestly for the sake of a few hours I’d just allow it.

Neighbour disagreements can start for petty reason and rapidly escalate - even impacting future house sales.

How many mm is the space between their wall and your fence. Render needs to be 15mm thick I think, the wall needs hosing with water, it'll all be done from your side with all their equipment which is really messy.

Our neighbour used our side passage for scaffolding. We were happy to allow that, but neighbour was a developer so it was done by the book. That meant legal contract drawn up by solicitors, payment made to us on a per day rate and penalties for going over time. If you do agree, there is no reason why you shouldn’t have the same just because it is a domestic project.

And research the party wall act, and understand your position.

You just need to firm that you expect everything done by the book. Which also means they can explain why it is legally required if they think they can justify it.

A big yes to getting a web cam from Amazon. I have some Tapi ones that I usually have on window ledges looking front and back just for general security, but when I know/think a neighbour is having work done, I face them all looking that way, carefully placed to view my land only of course, "just in case". Last time, the neighbour was having a huge tree trimmed and the tree fellers dropped a huge limb onto my fence severely damaging it. Of course, both tree feller and neighbour claimed it was damaged before and wouldn't pay for replacement, until I showed them the web cam footage of the fence before the limb fell on it, as the limb fell on it and afterwards with the limb hanging over it. After they were banged to rights, they agreed to pay for a new one, but even then argued about the cost saying they could have got one cheaper etc etc and it took months to get the money out of them!

I agree@Amberlynnswashcloth should send a solicitors letter about the builders coming into the garden, it shouldn't cost much - maybe the CAB could help.

Not mean, just sensible. This should all have been agreed beforehand but odds are they knew that the OP wouldn't agree so left it and now intend to try to manipulate her.

And remember that the builders will make a terrible mess whilst rendering, mucking up the paving in your seating area. I agree that you should tell them you won't allow access so they should build it in something waterproof that doesn't need rendering. Otherwise you'll be looking at deteriorating rendering for years or face them coming in to re-render or paint it.

party wall agreements still apply to permitted developments. Not sure if there is anything you can do now as it’s so late down the lines but most definitely it should have been considered at the very least

Not quite. If it's within 3 metres and the foundations will be lower than yours.

The last bit probably means doesn't apply in this case.

The 3m distance is distance to your foundations, not the boundary (there is a 6m rule as well if they are digging deep - but I believe this is unlikely for permitted development) . They only need to leave a few centimeters gap between their building and the boundary.

Surely it won’t take long ?
Do you really want to fall outwith your closest neighbours over this? It would be quite mean to say no

So they've put the foundations under the fence? They should have got a party wall agreement but it's too late now.