NDN want me to cut down hedge

[Crymeashowr]

NDN are very nosy, if we’re in our front garden either watering plants, washing the cars, even just going out or coming home they will be at their window staring at us and on hot days they will sit on their bench facing our house and watch our every movement. Even if you wave and say hi they keep staring so we began to ignore them, but I got sick of the invasion of privacy and having an audience so we spent a small fortune on hedging and trees to block their view. Now the issue we have is that NDN are complaining that their front garden no longer gets any sun and their plants are dying. It’s not something I took into consideration and I’m not sure if legally I’m wrong for doing this? If they didn’t constantly stare at us then there wouldn’t have been a need for the plants. They never use their back garden which has full sun most of the day.
Am I in my right mind to refuse to lower the hedging?

Fences are controlled under permitted development, hedges aren't.
High Hedges legislation only comes into force if hedges exceed 2m in height, regardless of location. It only applies if the hedge is made up of evergreen trees/shrubs, or the majority is evergreen.

I would keep your hedge at the height you want OP. Your neighbour can cut anything that encroaches over the boundary, but can't cut anything else.

Do they know?

you could always say if they pay x amount then you will cut it down, and then add you will be getting another hedge etc ?

Yes. Especially when it's only been done because they are being annoying!! And they have a back garden to sit in. They'll need to buy plants that thrive in the shade and move the others into the back garden.

@Crymeashowr just say no we like the hedge because it gives us some privacy, there's plenty of sun in the back gardens😊

If they weren't so nosy, you wouldn't have felt the need to spend the money on putting in hedging🤷🏻‍♀️

Even if they do go to the council, the worst that will happen is the council will ask them to lower the height of the hedge, so I would just wait it out, they're unlikely to bother going to the council I think!

If it’s within your boundary, and the permitted height, you can do whatever you like. We had a very noisy neighbour at a previous property and did similar. She complained, got her nowhere.

What if these neighbours have hidden disabilities and depression and or mental health issues and their window on the world was a coping mechanism to prevent a sense of isolation.

What if they don’t?

Presumably the hedge is just stopping them looking directly into the OPs property. They can look in a different direction if necessary, but I think you're grasping at straws!
Being spied on and having their every move watched couldn't have been doing the OPs mental health much good. You have a right to a reasonable level of privacy in your own home!

Then they have 2 other sides of their garden to look out of.

I love my neighbours hedge out front, left and right of me (saved me having to do it lol!). They can't see me and I can't see them!

We are the best of friendly neighbours though, but we like our privacy too.

What if it’s their culture to quietly observe and they aren’t aware that in this culture being quietly observed causes problems.

What if they make some efforts to educate themselves about the culture they are living in?

@BarneyRonson dont be that prat, the neighbours are just bloody nosy

Tell em to fuck off.

I think BarneyRonson is satirising the toxic empathy that afflicts so many MN neighbour dispute threads.

What a ridiculous take.

Our home is the one place for us to have as WE like.

OP isnt doing anything wrong. If the neighbours aren't happy they can move!

Thanks everyone,
the fences are 1 meter tall and the hedge is just over that at the moment. We live on a hill and NDN garden is sloped, she usually gets full sun in the morning but she’s claiming the hedge will block her plants from getting the sun. When the sun comes round her neighbour on the corner blocks the sun from her front garden with a huge oak tree (apparently). They spend all day every day in their front garden, rain, sun or snow.
They are just nosey people, no disability etc, watching everyone is their hobby as they don’t work but it makes me feel uncomfortable being looked at every time im outside. I don’t think they’ll complain to the council, maybe because they sell drugs and breed dogs excessively and wouldn’t want reporting in retaliation, but that’s for another thread..
I think my main concern is that she’ll kill my plants and hedge to get her own way. I do have cctv but people like them don’t care.

She won’t have ruined anyone’s garden by planting a hedge 😂

There is no 'right to sunlight'. If you have planted shrubs on your land, and there is nothing in your deeds specifically forbidding this, you are completely within your rights.

Make sure your hedge does not exceed 2m and relax.

If she does, I'd get the most unattractive looking solid fence you can find, and plant a load of thorns around it.

I had a neighbour like this. Wanted to cut down specimen deciduous trees ( cherry and the like) so he could see through my back garden.

I was pretty blunt and told him that I did not want to look at him and enjoyed my privacy.
He had a few runs at it, but I refused to budge.

Current house, my neighbour has a high hedge, but as it’s on our North side , it’s actually very useful.

Remind your neighbour that World Garden Naked Day is coming up and you need the hedge so you can take part

Erm

Please report them about the dogs. Sounds like there may be some cruelty going on.

Oh please enlighten us! Which 'culture' is that then?