Neighbour put 15ft pool right next to our house

[DarkMoon]

Bit of background, neighbour regularly has music blaring out of her windows full blast all day long, screams at her kids daily, often calling the little shits or c**ts and quite often leaves the 12 year old to look after the 9 and 5 year old.
3 weeks ago she bought a 15ft long pool and placed it right next to our fence where our patio is with our outdoor table and chairs.
The kids are in that pool daily often for hours at a time, shrieking and swearing and splashing water over the fence, they have ruined food we've had on the table, my eldest dd's homework almost my phone and my 3 year old dd now hates going outside when there is any noise.
The mother doesn't give a shit, she's even left the eldest in charge whilst she's at work and they've been in that pool all day with a few younger kids who aren't hers.

I have no problems at all with kids playing in gardens and making noise but this is like torture, our gardens are 65ft long and she's put this pool as close to the house as possible.

Aibu to report her for noise and neglect or am I just being a miserable cow?

YANBU she sounds bloody awful. I agree that you can't make a complaint about neglect unless you have a genuine concern: while most of it just sounds like bad parenting I don't think it's acceptable to leave a 12 year old in charge of the other children all day surely?

I was going to suggest an outdoor dart board mounted on that fence, but I like the poo idea better.

I’d throw a turd or some dead animal in it overnight. If you accidentally find one. I doubt kids will want to get into the pool after seeing dead rat or something floating in it. Even if she cleans it and puts clean water in.

mine is next to my neighbours fence too but only because it has a filter and it needs to be plugged in. Ive stretched it as far as I can so it’s about half way down the garden.

OP, completely understand it is a bummer & never fun when neighbours are inconsiderate believe me I have afew of my own right now! And with that being your only flat/shady area too maybe that is also her reasoning for having the pool there?

Of course it's annoying but I would get a parasol or gazebo for your seating & you will have to decide to try & move it or I'm sure just put up with the pool for now. Vandalising it really is not on no matter how twatty they are.

I would probably cut a hole in it too

However, you must have a tiny patio - can you not move the table a bit further away? I would do all I could to mitigate the effects, whilst plotting the demise of the pool obviously.

Poo! Poo! Poo! Poo!!

Go on, you know you want to.

Not sure you’ll get anywhere by making a reasonable neighbourly request to the mother. She sounds like the entitled sort who consider that they can do whatever they like in their own house and garden.

We, however, have just achieved a positive result with bothersome neighbours’ children. We and a few other houses border a garden in which 3 young children play. The garden is surrounded by 8ft high leylandii type hedges and the family seem to think that the hedges offer soundproofing as well. Until a couple of weeks ago the children would shriek when all was going well and scream when it wasn’t. Then we would hear one of them repeatedly calling for mummy or daddy and evidently getting no response. We’ve had this for the past 2 or 3 summers.

Our NDN, whose garden backs directly on to theirs, said to the parents one day through the hedge that their children were extremely noisy. The parents agreed, as though it was somehow out of their control. During the course of the conversation, they said that they chose that particular house as the area was so quiet! The rumpus continued on until one afternoon we were sitting in our garden and NDN had some friends round and were eating and drinking in theirs. The noise started over the back and after a while I shouted “PLEASE STOP SCREAMING!” and a few minutes after we heard NDN shout “SHUDDUP!” A short while after that, we heard NDN go up to the hedge and address one of the boys by name and ask him to stop shouting. After a short silence we heard the little boy run indoors crying “Mummy - the man shouted at me.”

In fact, NDN didn’t shout. He just said “[Child’s name] - will you stop shouting please?” Anyway, since that episode, all has been peace and quiet in their garden. We hear the children playing out there every so often (nothing wrong with that - quite pleasant actually) and when matters start to get out of hand they are taken indoors fairly smartly. I somehow don’t think the OP will have such good fortune.

The children are being neglected, they are at risk of harm, and subject to abusive language and as such you have a safeguarding duty to raise this with your local safeguarding board OP.

Does she have a patio and the pool is on that? Does she have doors the other side do it can't go there?

Why don't you move your table & chairs to the other side?

Lemontart25 Surely the better solutions is for the children to show some consideration when using the pool. No splashing over the fence, no bad language or excessive noise.

I am not convinced a floating poo will stop this lot

Wait till night, then send one of your kids over the fence with a knife to pop it.

I was going to suggest this, then I saw the poo suggestion and I've changed my allegiance!

Have you a hosepipe ban in place? If a pool that size was emptied/ soiled, she couldn't re-fill it.

(Also, throwing your family faeces into there would save so much water flushing the toilet, don't you think? It's almost a public service you'd be performing . . . )

Pop pool or a tin of veg soup to look like vomit or loads and loads of green food colouring.

happypoobum how about many floating poos?

Surely the better solutions is for the children to show some consideration when using the pool. No splashing over the fence, no bad language or excessive noise.

I wonder why no-one else has thought of that? Seems so obvious now you mention it.

Poo pool rather not pop they would just patch it up.

Yes I have a tiny patio, and totally not exaggerating when I say rest of our garden is lumpy and bumpy and not flat in any place, her garden next door is flat all the way down.

She has already refilled that pool 3 times because of green algae, her hose can stretch to the bottom of the garden and there is drainage down there as well

When we first moved in she had her 10ft trampoline where the pool is now and her kids used to bounce and throw sweets and wrappers at my kids in the garden, I was so glad when her kids broke it and she moved it to the bottom of the garden.

We also have a parasol over the table as a shield from the water but if they really splash then the water goes all over it and into my kitchen, they have flooded the back of my kitchen once when they deliberately poured a hosepipe on my parasol.

Recommend the poo over the slashing - someones just been prosecuted for that! www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/06/29/63-year-old-slashes-swimming-pool-neighbour-dispute-childrens/

We also have a parasol over the table as a shield from the water but if they really splash then the water goes all over it and into my kitchen, they have flooded the back of my kitchen once when they deliberately poured a hosepipe on my parasol.

Surely if they're actually damaging your property there must be some recourse for you? No experience but maybe someone else can advise.

I wonder why no-one else has thought of that? Seems so obvious now you mention it.

I think the point is that the PP was claiming that it was too difficult for the neighbour to move the pool and if OP had the problem she should fix it.

BottleOfJameson

Sure would be! But as OP has said the mother doesn't care... although OP hasn't said if she has actually spoken with her about that behaviour. Sounds more like the OP already has an issue with them (& rightly so of they are as she has described) & the pool itself is the main issue right now. But if it was myself & I was out there when things were ruined on my table I would shout over & say "please be careful, we are eating/doing homework etc". No reason to let the behaviour continue unchallenged. I have just said there are ways of minimising the impact by taking some control. I would not continue to put things on the table if they are splashing that mad. After the first time with food ruined, why carry on with homework & electronics without saying something? They won't know unless you tell them & even if it is on purpose they can't deny 'not knowing' you were there is you tell them! Just speak with them or move your table.

OP in that case if she is refilling the pool weekly why not ask her to move it? Obviously that is entirely different to a pool put up at the start of summer & maintained throughout like ours in the past.

They sound hideous & I can imagine their sort. I truly do sympathise. You just have to play smarter (not damage their property). Show you have taken all measures your side to minimise the issue. Then say please could you consider moving it as we have no where else for the table as you explained to us.

Also call the water company! Restrictions or not that kind of wastage on the verge of hosepipe bans may prompt them to impose a temporary one where you are.

OP if the 12 year old is being left in charge of the 5 year old and the pool is as deep as you say then contact SS, as if the 5 year old drowns then you will feel guilty for the rest of your life.

And as PP a dead animal found in the pool may stop them using it.

You have the right to report her. What she's doing is considered as a nuisance and must be abated.