Neighbours proposed extension close to our foundations

[Daddylonglegs1965]

I posted last week but it was a long emotive post I will try and omit much of that detail.
We live in a 1930’s semi in a nice area and our adjoining neighbours (who we are civil to but not on the best of terms with) are planning an extension.
They didn’t speak to us about the proposed extension and we have raised an objection within the timescale and we are waiting to hear about this. Tomorrow is the deadline for receiving objections.
Our existing extension quite small in comparison (completed by the previous occupants) has been standing for almost 25 years yet this is not shown on the drawings we were sent? On the drawings sent they are planning to build right up to the boundary fence and as far out as they possibly can 6 metres (a lot further out than our existing extension) with a pitched glass roof. In our appeal we have stated

1. Our existing extension of over 25 years is not shown on any of the drawings and it is likely to be affected.
2. it looks like our extension foundations will be impacted (as they are planning to build right up to the boundary) raised concerns about drainage issues etc
3. other issues are blocking and reducing our LIGHT and affecting PRIVACY by overlooking our main living space and garden and possibly our daughters bedroom.
4. we have said we are concerned about the size and scale of the extension.
5. If he is planning on building so close it could impact on our foundations and property in terms of drainage and water damage.

If we have put an objection in what happens next? They have told another neighbour they want to start work on the extension ASAP. I phoned our local planning office yesterday to raise my concerns and the planner was as unsympathetic as it would be possible to be and said she didn’t think our objection would be valid but she would speak to her manager and she didn’t think a sight visit was necessary and I should have a look at the party wall act which isn’t a planning matter. I have looked at the party wall act and if they are planning to build so close to our extension then it is valid. Has anyone had any experience of this and is it up to us to knock on his door and say he needs to get a party wall act drawn up before he can start to build or how do these things work in practice please? I know he should cover the cost of this (which I know he will be annoyed about and reluctant to do) as it could delay his build but where do we start? Thanks

Oh, I didn't know that @claire697. So if the neighbour(s) object, you have to apply for planning permission, is that how it works now?

At least it will delay him and let him
Know he has to be a little mindful and that he can’t just do exactly as he wants.

But somehow I think our local
city planners have maybe little experience, gumption and will just let people do what they like to save them having to lift a finger & do any work.
They keep allowing planning permission for new build estates in an area not far from us. All local catchment primary schools are full to capacity and have been for sometime they are also in catchment for the best secondary school in the area which is similarly over subscribed.

You need to talk to them about the wall that's on the boundary and any roof over hang and guttering.

Our detached neighbours extended up to the boundary but the build the wall on the boundary (50% our side, 50% theirs). Not a huge issue in itself, however once they put the roof on which slopped towards our property overhanging the wall and then attached gutting to that it's about a foot on our land. Because it's on our land they never clear the gutters, meaning we have to do it all the water from their extension runs onto our patio.

Apparently if we'd raise this as an objection at the time of planning it would have been valid. Meaning they would have either had to built back from the boundary so everything was on their side or change the style/slope of roof so there was no overhang.

If the plans make it look like this could be the case and it's too late to raise a new objection, I'd talk to your neighbours about it.

Right OP. You have to think more strategically about this and stop being so emotional: you are unlikely to stop your neighbour from getting planning permission. If you rant and rave or cry you will likely close down communication and achieve nothing.

What you want to achieve and what you can achieve are two different things. You want to protect your own house and mitigate the effects of their extension on your lives. Go and talk with the neighbour. Bring him round to your garden and look at the plans together. Make it clear nothing is to overhang your property and ask him how he intends to maintain his wall and about the windows and overlooking. Tell him you want a party wall agreement in place before work starts. Set expectations and then if there is any deviation and no PWA contact a solicitor as advised upthread. And while you're at it, ask whether the builders are going to sort out the other wall.

I'm an architect so not a big fan of planners by any means but I'm going to have to defend them a bit.
The planning system at the moment has a 'presumption in favour of sustainable development' particularly in regards to housing due to the central government policy to 'solve' the housing crisis. It doesn't matter where you are in the country the same rules apply so housing development is pushed through by the process or by developers going to appeal to the central government. So planners are just doing what they have to with regards to housing - even if all these new developments seem a bit crap. The process currently means that planning departments have very little autonomy on the decisions and they have been cut back so much they don't have the resources to fight back. This will also mean that your planning authority is unlikely to determine in the 8wk period - round here 10wks seems to be the average for domestic projects.
There is no reason an extension like this has to affect your foundations - it's perfectly possible to build in these circumstances without causing damage, they just can't use standard foundations. I would also expect a party wall gutter detail so that the gutter sits on the party wall or wholly on their side & is lined correctly so drainage isn't an issue.
This isn't a planning issue but is party wall and building regulations issues and these are dealt with by different people, as other people have mentioned.
Your neighbour must issue a party wall notice before starting work (they are unlikely to do this until after planning) if they don't do this you will need to contact a solicitor off your own back to fight it. They have a legal duty to issue this notice so you are automatically in the right if they don't.
If your objection has merit under the planning system - hard to say without seeing it.
I think people anticipate unexpected change to worse than it often turns out to be. We had a neighbour who complained about a large extension as they worried about light and privacy but our client paid for some quite complex computer models that proved they wouldn't actually be affected as they had thought. Now it's built they don't seem to be as bothered as they thought they would be.

Very good advice from the 2 posters above.
I think you need to think that this extension is going to be approve (you can celebrate if it isn’t).
You need to make sure you are now taken into consideration. You can use the party wall surveyor that your neighbour appoints, or preferably ask for your own party wall surveyor, the neighbour will have to pay the costs.
Read up on party wall law, talk to your neighbour and make sure you let him know that you know your rights.
If he tries to start work without the agreement in place take immediate legal action.

Thanks all this is very good advice our neighbour just infuriates me. I get DH to speak to him as I would loose the plot with him. He applied to build an extension extension 2 years ago. Again he didn’t discuss anything with us and the first we knew of it was a letter from the council. Encouraged by DH who is fair and reasonable we thought rather than object we would be the bigger people and speak to him directly when he was outside washing his car. DH is lovely and not at all confrontational. He started the conversation with something like please can we have a quick word with you. Straight away neighbour put down his sponge looked aggressive and confrontational. DH says I hear your planning on extending. He quickly retorted with ‘...so what’s that got to do with you like’? He said he was building right up to the boundary (but it wouldn’t bother us), he calmed down said he would put frosted glass in so it wouldn’t be an issue so we didn’t object. He then later told a neighbour a few doors up that he was planning a glass roof and had just said that to get us off his back and so we wouldn’t object. He then got his wall half built with hideous bright blue lights inset in the wall. He isn’t a reasonable man so getting him round would be dreadful.

I think it's probably worth trying to clear the air with him and saying that it got back to you that he had fobbed you off, that's why you've objected as you're protecting yourselves but you'd rather deal with things honestly and amicably, that you understand he wants to improve his home, etc. and you have an extension, it's been great, etc. Then give him the shit sandwich about a Party Wall Agreement which protects everyone and particularly your investments in your homes. You'll be as cooperative as possible bearing in mind your rights and the need to not damage or encroach on your property.

If no PWA materialises then get a solicitor on the case immediately. He can't complain about that as you flagged it up and gave him fair warning.

I have a friend who is a party wall surveyor, disputes can be very costly.
Make sure your neighbour knows that you know you have rights and he won’t get away without doing things properly.
He sounds like a PITA

Thanks he is. When we bought the house we had the loveliest old lady next door to us. We hardly saw her except in summer but she was lovely. But I can remember the day they viewed the house I was close to tears when I saw them and I had a sinking feeling that they would be our new neighbours. He had a football shirt on and his car was adorned with football flags. My heart sank.

Now you sound like snob OP!

Thanks thats what I would have thought @claire697 but our planners sound like a bunch of numpties who are perspired to sit back on their laurels rather than getting their hands dirty and doing any actual work.

I think you intended to write our' planners ' are probably going to allow our neighbours to build a a perfectly legal extension ?

For anyone who asks I've copied the Neighbour Consulting Scheme from the planning portal. Although, as we found out, it may delay the process for your neighbours, in the majority of cases it won't stop the plans for the reasons wonkylegs gives above.

"What is the Neighbour Consultation Scheme?
The scheme relates to planning and is a method of prior approval; if you wish to build a large extension you must notify the local authority, who will then consult the adjoining neighbours to advise them of your planned development.

If your neighbours raise any concerns or objections, the local authority will decide if their objections reveal any impact on the amenity of the neighbouring properties and whether your plans can go ahead.

This scheme only applies to larger single-storey rear extensions. This means that extensions of over four and up to eight metres for detached houses and over three and up to six metres for all other houses, must go through this process"

Another point to consider is that if their party wall straddles the boundary, it won't be considered Permitted Development. It must be entirely within their boundary (inc. eaves) if it's gone through the Neighborhood Consultation Scheme. If they start building straddling the boundary, inform your planners and ask them to serve enforcement notice to get them to stop.

Suggest that you contact the party wall surveyors institute for free advice. I did and with little prompting the surveyor sent round by pita neighbour to doorstep me ended up telling him that just because planning permission had been granted it didn't mean that neighbour could build what he wanted because it wasn't legal to do so (encroachment on our property, needed to build from our side, scaffolding on our garden etc etc) Apparently pp is administrative and doesn't override (property law rights. That's the main reason planning dept won't get involved in disputes. Surveyor's advice to neighbour was 'stop being an arse and be nice to your neighbours. They're not the ones being unreasonable'
Stand your ground OP. www.ipws.co.uk

Have you read up on the party wall act? It is very easy to arm yourself with the facts.

If he starts without a party wall agreement you have to get an injunction. So get your own party wall surveyor who he has to pay for. It is the law, he can't not pay.

Read the information though. It's on gov.org

Planning DO NOT get involved in party wall. It is a totally different thing.

Get in touch with your local councillor(s) for advice ASAP. If they support you, they can ask for the PP to come before the planning committee, who will usually then visit the site.

The party wall situation alone should be grounds for a more detailed review. Take action immediately if they start building without PP or a party wall agreement in place. It's much harder to get things stopped, once the building has begun.

Thanks all very useful advice especially from @Kit30. The planner emailed my husband today following on from his conversation with them yesterday.
He said whether or not planning permission is granted they will recommend NDN has a party wall agreement in place but it’s just a recommendation. But basically, they took photos of ourside and next door neighbours side two years ago when he last applied (which has now lapses). So they don’t think a site visit is necessary even though our extension doesn’t appear on his drawings yet again. They seem disinterested and I am 90% sure they will give him the go ahead. I will contact the party wall institute for some free advice.

See also www.partywalls.org.uk aka the Pyramus and Thisbe Club - after the lovers who whispered to each other through a party wall

Thanks all neighbours haven’t started building just yet. DH says to leave it (as he doesn’t want any bad feeling nastiness from them) and he will take photos of our walls etc before they start but I don’t think it’ll be long before they start.
NDN has been banging inside off and on most days and nights for a couple of weeks now. He is still banging now 10:40 and I am trying to relax and watch a film as DH is out I am struggling not to hammer on the wall and go round to ask him to pack it in.