Climbing Frame and Privacy

[HappyKite2067]

We don’t want to be ‘those neighbours’ but our neighbours have put a climbing frame for their children right next to our fence. We now constantly have little faces popping up over our (2m) fence and looking straight onto our patio area and into our kitchen.

Their garden is probably 4m x 6m at a push, so I think anywhere in the garden would probably intrude.

We really want children to make use of a garden, we don’t mind noise (and they are noisy!) and we don’t even mind the occasional ball being kicked over- but this is our privacy now.

Anyone been in this position before? I imagine they are unlikely to take down.

You'll just have to make you fence higher I think.

Trellis? Potted or clumping fargesia bamboo (sounds fab in a breeze). One of those sail things?

Our fence is already at the maximum legal height and it is also their fence!

Does This type of bamboo spread or get out if control? I googled it and it looks really nice and I quite fancy it for my garden.

You can’t dictate the use of their garden this way, OP. It’s just part and parcel of having neighbours with kids. Ask them politely to speak to their kids about not staring over the fence or you could add a trellis to the top of your fence.

Honestly if you want total privacy then the only way to achieve that is with no neighbours. Getting annoyed about privacy and that they've put up a climbing frame is silly when you live in a built up area with neighbours who can probably all see into your garden from their houses.

You might need to use trellis or something else as pp said. It doesn't have to be more fence you can be creative!

You could plant in pots

I think we can if it’s within 2m of a boundary line?

I’d be tempted to erect a wooden pagoda type thing n the patio that you can attach climbing plants to, fix a temporary privacy screen on ( probably won’t need it during winter months ) . That’ll stop the kids nebbing

This looks nice! We will have a look!

You would be quicker getting the men of rhe house (any male really) do some naked gardening / tan line removal 😉 🙈

NdN will be moving the frame and adding on to the fence quicker than you can say dont get sunburned 🤷‍♀️

I love this suggestion hahah! I think that may be the cheapest and quickest option!

Have you spoken to the neighbours to find a solution? We're "that neighbour" with a climbing frame in the garden. I'm aware we're within our rights to do it but also aware how annoyingly intrusive it is. No one here seems bothered but if anyone complained we'd work with them to find a solution. I dont think there's a legal height limit for hedges, although I've learnt something today as I didn't realise there was a height limit for fences

The good thing about these big garden toys is that the kids tend to get bored of them quite quickly. There is every chance that it will be used less and less until it’s used not at all.

You can’t

The quickest and cheapest option is for your DH to expose himself to the children next door? I think I'd take any other option tbh

I wouldn't worry OP, the children will get bored of it. Mine got bored of every outdoor installation, climbing frame, house, trampoline. Then inevitably when they were too big for them they had a renewed interest. Almost as if they suddenly noticed there was a climbing frame taking up half the garden and rotting peacefully away.

OP, can you plant shrubs along the border? We have shrubs along the length of our garden because I do not choose to see my neighbours or have them see me. (nothing I can do about the clouds of cannabis smoke wafting over, though - at least you don’t get that with kids!)

Depends how high the climbing frame is. How high is it?

🙄

Yea that would be a quick and a cheap option. Once sun block is applied (before he left the house 🤪 ) .....

One of the social contract rules of living Urban is to respect the privacy of NDNs spaces as much as possible.

So NDN or you having a fence which is designed to block line of sight its saying
Private space
No peeking in
Thank you

The council states we can. I don’t want to get the council involved but it clearly states we can ask for it to be removed if it’s within 2m of a boundary and over 2.5m (which it is).

I’m pretty sure it was just a joke…

My neighbour actually got told he had to remove the roofs off of his climbing frame as they were too tall and he didnt have permission for it. Same if you errect a shed in your garden it still needs to comply with regulations

I’m just not sure what the solution would be…feels as though there is no compromise. They either take it down, we put up with it or we spend money creating more privacy! I suppose we could ask for a split in the cost for plants etc but it feels a little strange!