Kids playing outside my house non stop

[GirlMumGabby]

The house next door to me sends their two daughters to play outside at every opportunity. All day at the weekends and straight after school until 9pm midweek. Now it’s the summer holidays it’s non stop.
I don’t mind kids playing but now groups of children gather and it’s right outside my house. They play football and my car gets hit all the time. They climb lamp posts, drop litter and run up and down my driveway. They scream, shout and whizz around the road on scooters. I don’t really know what to do. I have asked them a few times to move on as my daughter is trying to sleep but it makes no difference. I don’t want to make enemies with their parents… especially when I hear them swearing and shouting at each other. I’m getting fed up with it as my 3 year old is now being kept awake by them. I have contacted the housing association but they have said children playing is not antisocial behaviour. Has anyone experienced this? Do kids get to an age where they get bored and stop hanging around outside? When do parents let their children leave the estate they live on to play in parks?

Where I live the children seem to come in waves. They will be there for a few years, then gone for a few years. I like hearing them, I think it's nice

I have just had the opposite conversation with my wife. We were saying it is such a shame that there are not children out playing in the sunshine.
We used to play outside so enjoy the sounds of happy children playing.

I didn't use to mind but now they scream and swear all the time. They run up and down my driveway to get the football that constantly bounces off my car. They don't really play. I assume as it gets darker earlier I will see them less.

I think you just have to accept the noise, as children should be out playing rather than stuck inside. I don't mind kids up my drive getting a ball, providing they are carefully and respectful around our cars and things on the drive.
I did tell the kids not to litter in the cul de sac where we live, they were very good and don't do it now.

The ball hitting my car a lot would be an issue though, what did the parents say when you raised it with them? Just because the parents swear at each other doesn't mean they will at you- have you tried having a chat with them ?

OP this is not normal nice playing out and it’s antisocial even if it doesn’t meet the threshold for antisocial behaviour. No one in this situation would be bothered about kids just playing, but they aren’t just playing are they, they’re being sent out of their homes to be someone else’s problem for a bit.

I had this at an old house and to be honest I moved. If the parents are happy to cast the kids out and not supervise them, then you won’t get anywhere with raising it. If they were decent parents then these kids wouldn't be disturbing your child’s sleep, on your property, hitting balls against your car or subjecting you to swearing. You’ll just get a convenient rose tinted ‘kids being kids’ while they shut the door and enjoy the peace.

I totally sympathise with you OP. I had months of misery : the young children playing outside my house , staring in my windows, kicking balls in my garden, shouting and chanting at me , swearing at me. And the older ones vandalising my hedge and throwing sticks and stones and swearing at me.
So I eventually got the police and the council anti social behaviour department involved and things have improved. But I'm so upset it had to come to that.I don't know if the parents know and don't care how their children behave or whether they are ignorant about their behaviour.
But it's devastating when life in your own home is disrupted by neighbourhood children's behaviour.

Exactly this. As soon as they get home they are outside. Yesterday they were out in the rain for hours. I felt sorry for them at this point. They were absolutely soaked.
It's not playing. They are bored and frustrated. There's lots of other children who play happily with their parents and siblings. They don't all play in the street.
I've raised it with the housing association now and waiting to hear back. I didn't want to identify myself to the parents for my own safety. The mum and dad shout constantly and swear when they do finally tell the kids to come back in. It's not really an approachable house....

Thank you for sharing. This is exactly how I am feeling about it. They often glare through my windows. The times we have asked them to play elsewhere as they are keeping my daughter awake, they've just laughed at me. Then I can hear them making impressions of me like I'm an old lady.
What happened in the end? Did they visit the parents or send out a letter?

Write a letter to their parents saying that you love that the kids are playing outside but for happy, sustainable years of play you need to request that they please...

1/ remind their children to not swear or use abusive language.
2/ remind kids to keep their loud shouting to a minimum.
3/ ask childern to try not to hit balls on neighbours' cars.
4/ remind children to avoid playing on neighbours' property.

State that if the children start to play more politely you will not have to think of reporting them to the local council.

Send letters with a bag of sweets to each house.