Boundary fence II

[OnlyMakeBelieve]

I wrote a while ago about a boundary fence issue. Our neighbours erected a 9ft fence around our boundary after we put decking over an ugly raised platform (the platform has been there for more than 20 years). We applied for retrospective planning permission (we didn't know it would count as a decked platform) which we got at the end of November.

We raised the problem with the fence with the council last August. Planning regulations say fences over 6.6ft have to have planning permission. The council dismissed the complaint in October without telling us. We were later told it was because we didn't have planning permission for the decking, even though we had been told we HAD to apply or face the law and were in the process of doing it. When we found out, we put another complaint in.

The council are now saying there is nothing they can do about the fence and that it is down to our neighbours' goodwill to reduce it. They say this is because our planning permission was given with the fence in place and so our neighbours don't need to apply for permission and can keep the fence.

Is this right? It feels to me as if we have paid for the neighbours' fence to be given planning permission.

Interesting. However, I wouldn't always rely on what local authorities tell you as being correct as from my experience circa 20% of staff are virgins in incompetent.

The problem is you would have to get professional advice which will cost. The alternative is complain to your local councillor and they do carry a lot of authority with department heads so may be the best first action

I've had to be quite specific when applying for planning permission. Unless you mentioned the fence in your application I don't see how that can be included.

@pipandmum They included it at first even though our professional plans had said it was neighbours. We told them straight away and they took it out of the plans around a month before permission was granted.

They say they gave permission on the grounds that the fence was there, but the fence has never been given planning permission so I don't understand how they can say it is okay to stay and they are powerless to do anything.

@MarieG10 We've already involved the councillor. I think that pssd the council guy off.

I can understand your neighbour putting up a high fence if you have raised decking. Our neighbour has a raised deck and they stand on it looking over into our garden, it's really intrusive

Wish my neighbours would put up a nine foot fence! I’d be happy not to see em!

I’d be putting hanging baskets along it and making it nice. I’d be happy I couldn’t see them and they couldn’t see me. Plant shrubs in front of it and perhaps a few solar lights and it could be really nice. You could put trellis along it and encourage climbing plants like clematis with its beautiful summer flowers to grow along. Or fruit trees trained in fan shapes along it. Take advantage of it. Paint it to match your shed etc.

Or go down the whole legals route, which will take forever and cost a fortune.

Life’s too short.

@Witsend101 The decking is around a platform that has existed for the last 20 years. It's actually slightly shorter than the original platform. Our neighbour used to use it to come into our area with the previous owners and tidy it up for him.

@Elieza We're not allowed to touch it as it is on their property and if you've ever seen a 9ft fence, you would see how imposing it is. It is like living in a prison. Life is too short and I want it to be as nice as possible. This has cut off light and plunged us into shade.

We don't object to the fence. it is the height - regulations say 6ft 6 or you need planning permission. Theirs is 9ft and they've been giving permission off the back of our planning application, which cost us almost £1000 in total. All we want is for the rules that applied to us to apply to them.

Is it 9ft fence from their ground height and how high off the natural ground is your raised platform?

We have lived on a hill before now where every back garden had a 6'6" fence but as it went down the hill and the gardens were level it was only 4ft on one side, so every person could see into the neighbour below them on the hill. Absolutely no privacy if you had a very nosy neighbour, which we did. Luckily we were renting so we could move after 6 months.

Same question as pp really, how much higher than your new decking is the neighbour's fence?

@JuniperSnowberry It is 9ft from their ground level. The planning officer himself said it was too high.

@OnlyMakeBelieve As I asked, what is the height of the fence from the top of your decking? That is incredibly relevant too.

Sorry. It is 7.5ft. My husband is 6ft and it towers over him. The fence is also far longer than the deck.

We did consult our neighbours about covering the existing platform (which had been there for more than 20 years) before we did it and they were happy.

What I want to know is how they have been granted planning permission for the fence under our application? How can the council charge one neighbour and not the other?

Also, we use the term decking but that is only because there is wood around a platform that has always been there. People have always sat there and, as I said, our neighbour used to use it to pop in and out of the gardens.

In addition, they now have no access to one of the walls of their property, which means that if they need any work done on it, workmen will now have to come through our home. So not only have we paid for their fence to stay, we have to put up with the inconvenience.

If the planning officer said it was too high can that evidence not be used to do something about it?

I am totally confused, in January you posted this fence was only 2m tall.

Also that it cost you £1000 for planning. Is it more expensive to apply for retrospective planning?

Re maintaining property, they can either remove a fence panel or gain access to your side through the courts. There is usually something about granting access for a neighbouring property for the purposes of maintenance in the deeds. Usually to stop petty disputes preventing sensible measures to maintain a home.

I do wonder why this went from a completely amicable neighbour to one who erects a 2m fence when you were out, and then increases the height to 2.7m.