Batshit neighbours - right of way

[Jeelypieces20storeys]

Outing if anyone knows me but past caring. I live at the end of a terrace. We have a right of access over the bottom of 2 neighbours gardens (which has been fenced off from their "main' garden to create a pathway) to get to a communal garden shared by 7 houses. Neighbours whose garden we have to cross never use the garden, and made a point of saying so, so they don't have to help maintain it. Just used by the small children of 3 of the 7 houses.
The 2 neighbours have become v possessive over the path after we weeded & upgraded it (as apparently we are "stealing their land") and put a new high fence at entrance to communal garden which opens into the path (this is relevant).
My young child, 2 Dan's and neighbours child were playing in communal garden. My sis went to check on them & opened gate & stood & watched them for 3 mins max. Neighbour 1 came out & went to neighbour 2's garden who then came out yelling and screaming that the path was not to be used, she was "loitering" on their land & communal garden is a drying green not for children playing in. (It has swings, a trampoline etc & she's NEVER been in it ). Gate & lock are so high the kids can't reach & sis was just checking they hadn't got locked in.
It all got a bit heated. This is just bat shittery, yes? Does anyone know the rules of right of access? The kids werent playing IN the pathway.
Thanks if u got thru this. Am I BU to use path or is neighbour correct?

Yes there's a 6 fóot fence separating their gardens from the path (which are also part of their garden before anyone starts!). I've weeded both owners parts of the path for the past 5 years with no drama. Not massive weeding, just literally keeping it clear enough to walk on. Broken slabs were right outside our gate as you head into house 5's but if the path.

It’s also likely when they bought the house they expected people to cross the access a few times a week to hang washing. Not have their children, and other relatives, crossing it repeatedly to use it as a playground.

Where does it say it's been crossed repeatedly to be used as a playground?

Yes I accept that. I just use the word technically a lot when I'm explaining thngs.
The part of their gardens that I have right of access over
There's no covenant in terms of the use of the communal bit of grass. Another neighbour has put a shed up etc on it.

Standing on a right of way is nit a crime nor is it a breach of their rights as landowners. What behaviour! It's very sad!

They also cannot place locks to a shared area that users cannot reach. They may have made the area less sade for children 🤨

But they are neighbours so it sounds like you need a group meeting to just clear the air before things get bad. Why they are so bothered is the critical question you need to get to the nub of when you all meet. I'd suggest you meet I a local pub if you can.

But really, the use of the shared area should be set out in the covenant. If it is only meant for drying clothes, does anyone use it for that? Do you need a way of buying them out?

Good luck, it's crap when neighbours are AHs.

I'm assuming you put the play equipment in the drying area yourself? Without asking anyone?

Given that you replaced slabs because your child may fall that suggests your DC uses it often.

I mean, if you are now trying to say that it was the first time ever or your child uses it once or twice a year then that may change things.

Your assumptions are absolutely incorrect. None of the play equipment is ours.

"Swings were put in before my time by other owners, trampoline was put in this summer by another neighbour."

Who put the trampoline and things in the communal area?

How often do the children use it as a playground?

Use varies depending on the weather. During lockdown it was daily. In winter not at all. Nice weather, maybe twice a week at a push for playing for half an hour and once a fortnight for drying?

Neighbours grandchildren use it when they visit on a Sunday. House 1 have a child but I don't know how often they use it. House 8's children previously used it but haven't in last few years as now teens.

I’d bet the combination of the slabs and the trampoline being added has been the last straws.

They feel the garden is being taken over and your sister (someone not even a resident and extra children) being stood there was the final straw for them

You really need to find out if it’s allowed to use the area as a playground.

It was neighbour 1's sons best friend who put trampoline in. Trampoline used to be I. Neighbour 1's garden and she gave him it for communal garden. Neither neighbour 1 or 2 has been in garden for at least 5 years, long before the trampoline was there.

Depends on the person, it could easily take my husband longer than that. He only walks a few steps and then has to sit down, he's got a special walking stick which turns into a seat. So he sits there for a couple of minutes then takes a few more steps. I think it would be illegal to ban him from a communal area because of his disabilities and surely the same rules would apply to a child with a disability.

As long as you are sure that your title doesn’t restrict the use of the communal area to a drying green, YANBU.

A right of access is a right to access and egress, providing that’s all you are using that part of your neighbours land for, there is no issue.

Looking at that diagram, your two neighbours are the only two disadvantaged by a right of access benefitting you, all others directly access the communal area, they likely resent you that right.

Id honestly approach them reasonably to ask what their issues are to see whether you can find a way forward. You are obliged to disclose neighbour disputes on sale of property, this is not the hill you want to die on OP.

Unfortunately it sounds like you’ve got the neighbours backs up by weeding their gardens/replacing the slabs in their gardens without their permission. Then your sister standing in their garden to hold the gate open has just blown everything up.

It’s one thing having your actual neighbours using the right of way, but it could start to feel like a bit of a free for all if their guests are using it too. I’m sure that you’re allowed to do that but if they already felt like you were overstepping with the paving slabs then I can see that it would get their backs up a bit.

I don’t agree with their behaviour but for the sake of peace I wouldn’t do anymore maintenance on the right of way and I’d only use it for walking along to the shared garden- I wouldn’t stop and stand there for even one minute.

Would they have recognised your sister and the dc as coming from your home? Is it possible to access that area from the street via the access path. Just because they put play equipment there does not permit other families to use it.

You're neighbour sounds like a miserable git but unfortunately they are probably right. Mil's neighbours have right of way right past her kitchen window and are definitely not allowed to loiter, it's supposed to be purely for taking their bins out. She had a problem with a weirdo neighbour at one time who used to stop and peer through the windows....

I think all you can do is do your best not to stop on the path and definitely don't maintain it, it is literally part of their garden. I'd ignore the bit about the "drying green".

We have a similar situation with a neighbour over whose rear garden we all have right of access. They don't like it either, but frankly, why buy a house where neighbours have a right of way if you're going to get stroppy about it? They can't stop you using the right of way, so crack on. Threaten court proceedings next time they complain - they'll lose obviously.

YANBU. They are obscenely aggressive. Are you a different race or colour to them?

That’s not necessarily correct. I lived in an end terrace and the neighbours had ROW across our garden to take their bins out. We were allowed to place a gate across the path. We just couldn’t lock it.

@Hopingforagreatescape frankly, why buy a house where neighbours have a right of way if you're going to get stroppy about it?

Because it was Xk cheaper and it was all they could afford, because they needed a quick move, because they checked it out a lot before buying and only saw occasional use from the neighbours at the time, and because they'd checked out all the surveys and it said 'drying green' which = occasional use ... Any of the above :-)

I agree with this. I wonder if they had deliberately not maintained the shared access pathway to the garden to put people off using it?

They shouldn’t have bought a house with right of access if they weren’t happy about it