Neighbour Garden Room privacy

[goldfishbowl2025]

Hi Mumsnet,
I’m not sure whether this belongs here, but our neighbour’s new garden room sits a lower than our house and he can look up and see into my directly my bedroom. At night when their lights are on, it really feels like I’m in a goldfish bowl—I can see into their office and it makes me wonder if they can see into my room too.

I don’t want to draw my curtains all the time, but it’s starting to affect my sense of home and privacy. Has anyone been through something similar? How did you handle it? did you speak to them, did you ask for a blind, or find another solution? I’ve text but they don’t see how it’s affecting my privacy and to be honest it’s having a massive effect on me as my bedroom is my haven- I like to move around not thinking I’m being watched. He said he doesn’t work late down there but I feel like 3/4 nights last week he worked late and then gone 11pm I saw the lights go off (when they go off I can see the light reduce in my room).

help!!!

The lights are really bright, I have a thick blackout curtain, but the light is escaping around the edges. When he switches off the garden room light then it goes - my bed is next to the window so I’m probably more sensitive to the light. Also I’m also disturbed by the garden room bi-fold opening and closing especially at night.

I agree uses of houses change etc.

If the garden room was borderline on planning drop a line to the planning department to have a look at it. They can order people to take buildings down.

Meanwhile, blackout blinds and privacy film.

What do you mean “ask for a blind”? It’s your responsibility to put a blind in your own home if you want privacy, you can’t demand someone else pays for yours or puts a blind up in their home because you don’t want one.

Did he get / need planning permission? What do you mean by borderline?

Well it’s possibly a bit higher - but when I spoke to the people building it they said they could bring in some dirt and make the land at the back appear higher therefore then it wouldn’t be higher. They are a proper garden room company and it’ll be legitimate.

It’s a lovely garden room! It’s a bit too high but we are in a hill so look down into their garden and then they have a bit of a hump at the back so it sits on that.

If there is light coming from their garden room I can’t ask them to get a blind? Before that we had nothing over looking us.

I wouldn’t want them to take it down it was a big investment by my neighbour and I can see (perhaps a little too much) it’s a lovely office and gym area, even if it was deemed to contravene planning, I just want some of my privacy back.

when he works the doors are open and I can hear all the conversations when I’m in my garden. But I guess we could be sitting in our gardens just chatting away to our families and hear conversations.

If this is a reverse and you are the neighbour ydnbu. If the goldfish feels watched she should get shutters or something that let in light whilst giving privacy.

What do you want him to do?

Our neighbours have got a garden room that can see in to our bedroom, apart from
that we can only see trees and rooftops from our window as we’re at the top of a hill.

Tbh we just carry on as if it isn’t there. We leave the curtains and windows wide open in the summer. If they catch a glimpse of me getting changed or going to the loo in the middle of the night in my knickers then that’s their problem, not mine. Their light isn’t intrusive though as they don’t have any lights outside and it has curtains.

You could ask him to fit curtains or blinds? It’ll be worse in the winter.

I’d like him to get a blind on some his garden room just at the top when he’s working late into the evenings - I feel like their choices have impacted my privacy.

No you can’t get him to get a blind.

But that’s your problem, not his. He shouldn’t have to make alterations to his home because you don’t want to risk being looked at. That’s something for you to sort out to ensure your privacy.

Plant a row of trees as close to your boundary and the neighbour’s garden room as possible. They wouldn’t need to be that tall, just tall enough to screen their windows from the point of view of your bedroom.

I would mention about the light to your neighbour - that’s pretty bad if it shines that brightly it gets round your blackout curtains.

Our neighbours put it a very bright light in their kitchen which shines into the side of our house and basically blinds us when we go into our bathroom. We mentioned it and they stopped using it (it wasn’t an essential light to be used in their kitchen.)

The other thing regarding privacy is that you could plant something like bamboo to block the view - if you position it correctly you should need that much.

You sound like you're just moaning for the sake of it because you're bitter that built this garden room.

If there is light coming from their garden room I can’t ask them to get a blind? Before that we had nothing over looking us.

No.
Realistically I could leave my lights on 24/7.
You aren’t responsible for a normal about of light shining into someone else’s property.
If it bothers you the onus is on you to get the blind.

I feel like their choices have impacted my privacy.
You control your own privacy.

You’ve also complained about him opening the doors, so the hint is really that you’re being unreasonable all around.

You are lucky that nothing has changed in sixteen years. Most people have neighbours who’s comings and goings affect them at different times over the years.

My neighbour has a trampoline and her nine year old goes on it for hours. Naked. It’s right opposite our sofa.

Of course @goldfishbowl2025 can ask them to get a blind, and if he’s a considerate neighbour he’ll get one. Just because something isn’t legally enforceable doesn’t mean it can’t be reasonably asked.

It would be more reasonable if OP had already done something about the light she doesn’t like, to ask your neighbour to get a blind because you don’t want to isn’t reasonable.

If he already knows you're bothered by it, I'd ask nicely if he would mind letting go into his garden room so that you can see how much of an issue it is.

You could get someone to move around in your bedroom and you watch from the garden room.

It might just completely put your mind at rest and then you'll never have to worry about it again.

She has blackout curtains.

No she can't. He's got a light on, he's not shining a bloody beacon.

Which she doesn’t want to close.

But surely anyone standing in the back garden can see into your bedroom if the neighbour can when they’re sitting in their shed?

Your choice not to put a blind up in your bedroom is what’s impacting your privacy! We have Venetian blinds up at our windows because I don’t like net curtains, don’t want my curtains closed all the time and don’t want people to be able to see into my house.