I live in a new build with a smallish garden. On 2 sides my garden is surrounded by houses (mine and one neighbours). Now the other neighbour has erected a huge outhouse to use as a golf simulator room! I think it's just within the rules, ie he's placed it exactly 1m from my fence, exactly 4m high etc. But it still will block out what little sun I get and will affect my house price. He's a selfish ****, given he could have put it the other side of his garden but that would impact the view out his French windows.
Other than frozen sausages, any recourse here? He didn't even have the decency to discuss it with me first.
Basically the building takes up a 3rd of his garden, which gives some context to what he's built.
Ta
Got more bad news for you - the noise coming from it is going to be deeply irritating too. WHACK-BOOMF…
If just 1m from fence 4m is too high if i remember correctly from when we put up a shed
Council planning department should be your first port of call, the sooner the better.
Also worth considering how much of a neighbourhood war you're willing to start and if the neighbour is likely to be a spiteful nasty piece of shit if he's forced to take it down, pay compensation etc.
Get it down!
https://nextgenspaces.co.uk/understanding-the-2-5-metre-rule-for-garden-rooms-buildings-in-the-uk/
Sounds like some stealthy middle of the night tape measure action is required before making the decision as to if you want to throw the neighbourhood relationship granade . Always best to be informed rather than just plough in.
And the noise....that could get old fast. Better than a drum practise room I guess.
Check the planning permission for the site. New build scheme can have the permitted development rights removed (often as a Reserved Matters condition).
Yeah within 2m of the boundary maximum height is 2.5m.
I built a pergola last year, in the space behind the garage. Made sure it wasn't more than 2.5m high.
Council.
My neighbours did something similar (I posted on STW about it at the time), I reported it to the council and it was gone within the week. YCMV.
If it is permissible (which it doesn't sound like it is) then your only other recourse is talking with your neighbour and good luck with that.
Yeah within 1m of the boundary maximum height is 2.5m.
Is it not within 2m? The video above explains it better. Definitely not 4m high, 1m from boundary.
I guess the issue is, would it being a bit further away and a bit lower make a meaningful difference to you or just being there at all is the game changer.
Sorry typo, yes 2m from boundary affects the height.
One other aspect is that if it's within 1m it needs to be constructed of primarily non-combistable materials. I know you can get treatments for wood that make them non-combistable but it's another avenue to explore.
https://www.gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk/resource/building-regulations-garden-sheds/
1m here in scotland.
I guess until the sun comes out in the summer I'll not know the full impact. I'm slightly pissed as he clearly knows the rules, and has (I think) met them, but not even considered the implication on his neighbour
If it's within the rules I guess there is nothing I can do however if not I'll be approaching council. No issues with a breakdown of neighbourly relationships, I always say hello but beyond that there is nothing to break down.
I guess until the sun comes out in the summer I'll not know the full impact.
........
here in scotland.
All the sun coming out tells you is that it'll be raining soon 🙂
You don't actually need to wait - becuase really you'd be waiting a full year as the sun's arc changes through the year. You can get an app for your phone call 'Lumos' that lets you stand in a certain position wave the camera around and see the sun position/ trajectory on the screen any given date
8am-8pm start drilling holes in the wall for shelves or the like. Intermittently for the next fortnight.
If it's within the rules I guess there is nothing I can do however if not I'll be approaching council. No issues with a breakdown of neighbourly relationships, I always say hello but beyond that there is nothing to break down.
Report it anyway. If it's fine, all anyone has lost is a bit of the council's time. It's not your job to judge, it's theirs.
get yerself over to
Had a look..
'Compoface isa British slang term describing the exaggerated, glum, or mildly annoyed expression people pose with in local newspaper photos when complaining about trivial issues to secure financial compensation(compo). It frequently features crossed arms, pointing at the inconvenience, or a "hard done to" look.
I'd never heard of the expression, but firstly, having your house devalued isn't a trivial thing. And secondly noone has mentioned financial compensation...
But thanks for posting..😉
People only behave badly to others if they are allowed to.
I'd never heard of the expression, but firstly, having your house devalued isn't a trivial thing. And secondly noone has mentioned financial compensation...
dont be so defeatist! You pointing at the outhouse looking sad would fit right in. Bonus points if the neighbour is taking a swing in the frame too
having your house devalued isn't a trivial thing
The value is only an issue if you are planning to sell the house I suppose. The impact really is in your enjoyment of your home, you don't need to concern yourself with the value someone who doesn't live in your home might place on it.
On the upside its one more golfer cooped up is a dark little shed which makes one less golfer you, or any of the rest of us, need to worry about encountering in the wild 🙂
As you say your neighbour seems to have built right up to the limits of the rules - the whole permitted development thing re sheds is a bit mad in terms of the scale it sanctions which is really pretty large in the context of a lot of modern housing, or more particularly the space around most modern houses. It seems more like the rules are configured to unburden local authorities than be of help to households - the scale and proximity it permits seems like a recipe for neighbour conflict.
Given how he's built right to limits he only needs to have made small oversights to have exceeded the rules - and also keep in mind there are planning rules and building standards rules - and a size / spec of building can pass one and fall foul of the other. The overall footprint (15sqm iirc) rather than the height and be a threshold for some rules, having power in the shed might be one aspect as it can add additional requirements for the fabric of the building and so on may be areas where a mark has been overstepped maybe
Local Authority Town Planner here...
Check the planning portal ( https://www.planningportal.co.uk/) to see whether it falls within 'permitted development' (ie development which does not require planning permission). This is also set out in the General Permitted Development Order if you're feeling nerdy. Also check with the Local Planning Authority whether said permitted development rights have been removed from the property.
If you consider that planning permission is required, or are unsure, then you should report it to your Local Planning Authority. They should visit the site and assess whether planning permission is needed. If it is not, then unfortunately for you that is the end of it in planning terms (albeit you could see whether there are any covenants on the property which prevent outbuildings being erected but this is outside the planning system). If planning permission is required then usually the Local Planning Authority will either a) invite a planning application if they think the development is acceptable (ie it is likely that the development would be approved) or, b) commence enforcement action with a view to either removing the structure or making changes to make it acceptable.
Your best bet is to give the LPA a call on Monday morning but please remember that this may take some time to resolve as LPAs (and indeed the rest of Councils) are overstretched thanks to years of government cuts, this is not something that will be remedied overnight and I would be looking at a few months.
With regard to your property value, this isn't something the planning system can take into account.
Sorry if this isn't the answer you were looking for but I'd like to think its somewhat realistic.
A neighbour of mine has done stuff like this. Massive breeze block 'wendy house' at the end of the garden - he had some of the older (late teens) kids living in there - it was a dwelling. Extension to the side, but floor one goes over land owned by a a block of flats (ground floor has access to the rear, but the upper floor goes over the boundary. Extension to the rear also. He also has two sheds on his front drive (in front of the property line), and a wood burner with no planning/buildings (we're in a clean air zone). Fortunately, he's on the other side of the road so I can's seen the back.
It's way bigger than 15 sq/m! But I don't think there is a limit to size in scotland, other than has to be less than 50% of the garden.
The impact really is in your enjoyment of your home, you don't need to concern yourself with the value someone who doesn't live in your home might place on it.
Kind of agree but the 2 are linked. Ie if it spoils the enjoyment of my home, ie blocks sun from my patio, means no sun ever hits the grass so it never dries out etc then that's clearly something others will factor in when buying the house
Or at least I would pick up on that.
the thing that probably pisses me off most is that he didn't even ask if I'd be OK with it. He technically didn't need to, but I think most people would have. It's not like we have ongoing beef or anything, I've always been pleasant to his family, dropped of birthday gifts to his kid etc.
50% of the garden.
50% of the footprint of the house I believe. And that 50% includes all outbuildings...so if he already has another shed.....
Edit - think I'm wrong for Scotland....50% footprint house in England but garden in Scotland...I think.
he didn't even ask if I'd be OK with it.
And if he had and you'd said no but he really really wanted a shed to whack off his club in but his other half said it had to be there out of her way? She was always going to win that one sadly.
My understanding is the 50% thing is that no more than 50% of the land around the original house (as built or as it stood in 1948, whichever is older) should be covered by outbuildings or extensions to the house AFAIK.
https://share.google/ttFaS9pM78fSMKx2Q
But again, this is the UK set of rules.
Up to 30sqm can still be Perm. Dev.
As alluded to here, there are the legal issues and the moral issues. Unfortunately, it seems this likely falls foul of the latter, but not the former.
It's easy for me to say, but it seems like the only real solution is to sit down, think about accepting that this is how it is now, and objectively look at how much of an issue it will actually be for you. If it is significant, then, shit as it sounds, then I'd be staying to think about moving. Staying and fighting this, even if they're it's a chance you will 'win', is only going to end up one way - with shitty neighbourly relations, and that would be enough for me to not want to live there any more.
It's way bigger than 15 sq/m! But I don't think there is a limit to size in scotland, other than has to be less than 50% of the garden.
bigger than 15sqm can be within permitted planning but still require building regs approval, and building regs for electrics too
But - unless things are flagrantly outwith any rules the most you can expect is some modest modification of whats there - its clearly been built with an awareness of the rules so any ways in which it goes beyond then will be solvable with some modest changes or retrospective permission. Theres not an outcome where the bulldozers will get called in.
Leylandii, or bamboo - our neighbour has both on our border (🤬)
Sorry to read about this TP.
It's easy to be dismissive of things like this but having been through something visually similar a few years back I do sympathise. It really got to me to be honest.
How did you get on with this neighbour before he put the shed up? That's just curiosity, it's a dick move to have put the thing up without even having a conversation with you imo.
Some good answers, including from a town planner! I agree there's probably not much I can do about it.
I guess some people are just oblivious to how other people's actions affect others, or more than likely don't care. Not going to move out because of it obviously, not the end of the world, but I foresee myself not being as considerate to him and his family as I have been in the past 5 years
I guess some people are just oblivious to how other people's actions affect others, or more than likely don't care.
TP, I know it doesn't help matters but if you want a truly nightmare scenario, check tihs beauty out on our road...
Someone got planning permission (God only knows how!) to build a proper Grand Designs job, built into the hillside. They felled a lot of big trees, got the diggers in, cleared the hillside and dug this enormous hole, then... nothing for 6 months. Then they started work again, and made the enormous hole even bigger. Then the sides of the hole started to collapse and United Utliities slapped a cease and desist order on them as the water and sewerage systems were shifting and being cut off to surrounding houses as the hillside slid downwards to fill the massive unsupported hole. Left like this for months now, the gardens of the surrounding properties have all been gradually dissapearing into what is now known by us all as 'The Pit'.
Nobody seems to be able to find out whats happening with it. The council can't get answers out of the owners. The people around it are fearing structural damage to their properties. I walk past it every day and marvel at both the stupidity and the truly inconsiderate nature of some people. Just look at the state of it! Its been like this for over a year! 🙄
Quick thought, is it the walls that are 1m from the boundary, or the roof overhang? Those log cabin things often have a generous overhang to keep wet off the wood walls.
Put an Iranian flag on the roof of it and tweet to the orange baby?
we need pictures
There's a few comments on how this blokes supposed to have a conversation... which goes - 'hello, I'm going to put up an absolutely legal outbuilding in my garden to enjoy my own hobby on my own land.'
What are you supposed to say to that? What do you offer in return because I don't see how he gains from not building this
Check your deeds (and his online for £7) estates often have restrictive covenants that may prevent this sort of thing. Cheaper via the planners (and report to building control) but might add ammunition with a letter from a solicitor on top of a visit from planning.
There os one simple answer and it was mentioned above. You query it with the council they decide if its permetted development AND if it is they still need to have undergone a building consent process and it must be constructed in accordance with building control.
Thats all you do. Let them decide if there are issues don't decide yourself that its probably fine and its not worth reporting.
Chances are he's that much of a **** to not discuss he's probably taken liberties all over the shop.
Get your phone call in tomorrow and see where it goes.
And if its a bust... Drum room.
There's a few comments on how this blokes supposed to have a conversation... which goes - 'hello, I'm going to put up an absolutely legal outbuilding in my garden to enjoy my own hobby on my own land.'
What are you supposed to say to that? What do you offer in return because I don't see how he gains from not building this
For sure. But most people make a point of not pissing off their neighbours no? Or at least I do.
Can he legally do it, for sure he can. Likewise there's lots of things I can do that i don't because I take into consideration not putting out my neighbours
But ultimately there isn't alot I can do if it's legal. As long he's happy to not have any neighbourly relationship then that's up to him.
And if its a bust... Drum room
Don't play the drums..
But I just hope he isn't expecting me to keep the window closed in future when I'm hammering out bad ac/dc riffs through my huge marshall amp as he and his family are relaxing in the garden! If the OH's feedback is anything to go by, listening to me murder Angus young solos for hrs at a time gets tiring pretty quickly🤣
As long he's happy to not have any neighbourly relationship then that's up to him.
By your own admission you have no "relationship" with him besides saying hello
My neighbours have just put a trampoline in their garden for the kids. I hate kids. I hate loud kids even more. But it's their garden and they're perfectly entitled to stick a trampoline in there
we need pictures
With the obligatory 'compoface' as previously discussed FTW
when I'm hammering out bad ac/dc riffs through my huge marshall amp
I think that may clarify things actually.
*Begin search on Bunkered forum for 'How to deal with noisy neighbour playing guitar badly' ..
Begin search on Bunkered forum for 'How to deal with noisy neighbour playing guitar badly' ..
Well given I always ensure my windows are well shut and it can't be heard outside such a thread won't be found about me..for now!
My neighbours have just put a trampoline in their garden for the kids. I hate kids. I hate loud kids even more. But it's their garden and they're perfectly entitled to stick a trampoline in there
Mine too, different neighbours. It overlooks my 6 foot fence, is absolutely massive, and the kids are noisy AF. It doesn't bother me in the slightest.
By your own admission you have no "relationship" with him besides saying hello
I have a fairly standard neighbourly relationship, I'm polite and make every effort to go out my way to not piss them off even if it inconveniences me. Like most neighbours I've had tbh. I assumed that's what folks did when living in a close knit community.
It's not finished yet so I don't know! Does the overhand count?
Well I don't actually know, but this sounds like an issue that may hang on details, so worth considering.
Don't play the drums..
Perfect.
Build drum room.
Don't learn to play the drums.
8am-8pm start drilling holes in the wall for shelves or the like. Intermittently for the next fortnight.
It's a new build.... Plasterboard doesn't offer much resistance.
Ok, so I stuck a pole through the fence to measure the distance from my fence. 95cm, so less than a meter
I'm yet to work out if the wall is definitely taller than 2.5m which it now needs to be. Not sure how I'd measure that one but I'm pretty sure it's taller than that based on how far above my 6 foot fence it is.
The big question is do I raise it to the planning guys now. If I'm honest, it's 50/50 whether it's actually going to cause me an issue. But if i wait until it's finished then he'll potentially have even more work to undo.
And even if he loses, he'll probably just move it 10 cm to the right, and lop off half a foot from the wall to make it compliant. Albeit, at massive time and expense to him, with very little benefit to me.
Thing is, I have no issue him building it as long as it doesn't impact me. So if it doesn't, I don't want him to have to rip it down and start again for no good reason.
Leylandii, or bamboo - our neighbour has both on our border
It would be a massive inconvenience if Japanese Knot Weed was discovered growing underneath his new structure…🫢
Don't play the drums.
build your own shed close by, take up the saxophone. See how his handicap improves. I’d take loss of light over a learner sax, any day of the week .
We own an ex-local authority house on the edge of a wee town in central Scotland. It's a lovely location, no houses in front of us, just a drop down to the river and a view of the countryside. We've been here for nearly 30yrs and have worked hard to make the house nice and the bottom of our back garden into a wee suntrap that we enjoy in the summer months.
Enter our new neighbour, two doors up the hill. He shuns any sort of contact with his neighbours (a few of us have tried to say hi and chat, but have been soundly rebuffed), and soon after moving in to his house he built a huge garage. In it, he builds and modifies stock racing cars in the back garden of his rented council house. All last summer from 2pm-9pm, weekdays and weekends it sounded like the montage scenes from the A-Team. Angle grinders, welders, hammering and sawing. The impact on our enjoyment of house and garden has been huge. Windows have to be kept closed to cut out the noise and we rarely if ever sit out in the garden anymore. So, I really understand where you're coming from @tpbiker. It's not fair, but people just don't seem to care about being nice neighbours anymore.
I've thought about putting an 'anonymous' complaint into the council about the noise, but what are the chances that all I'm going to create is more problems with a selfish neighbour who now has an axe to grind?
I don't know what you can do tpbiker, but you have my sympathy. Selfish neighbours are a nightmare.
My neighbours have just put a trampoline in their garden for the kids. I hate kids. I hate loud kids even more. But it's their garden and they're perfectly entitled to stick a trampoline in there
There is a huge difference between a massive outdoor building blocking out loads of daylight and a kid playing on a trampoline FFS.
Selfish neighbours are a nightmare.
I live in a village with a pub that's more than 200 years old. Someone bought the house next to it and has been complaining about the noise. So far the best has been a moan that the beer garden - which was redeveloped when I was still in primary school - doesn't have planning permission.
all I'm going to create is more problems with a selfish neighbour who now has an axe to grind?
My big beef is he coukd have quulite easily put it other side of his garden and not impacted any of his neighbours, but didn't as that would impact him. So yeah, selfish.
The fact is though he's an idiot, because whilst he's looked up all the planning rules to ensure he's can build as big as possible without permission, and put it as close to my fence as he thought he could get away with, his selfishness and fact he wanted to push it as much as possible has meant he's misjudged it by 5 cm.
So if I'm that way inclined I can at any point get the council involved
If you don't want to speak to the council if you're not sure it's compliant/going to impact you then your only option left is to go speak to the neighbour and find these things out surely? Obviously that would be awkward as hell but it's got to be better than sitting stressing about it for the next 6 months
Obviously that would be awkward as hell but it's got to be better than sitting stressing about it for the next 6 months
I'm going to mention it next time I see him. Basically tell him to be aware that if it impacts me he'll be asked to get planning permission
Probably a bit awkward but hey ho,
I've thought about putting an 'anonymous' complaint into the council about the noise, but what are the chances that all I'm going to create is more problems with a selfish neighbour who now has an axe to grind?
You mention he’s renting his house though, so he’ll need to keep the council happy or risk losing his lease. Especially if they don’t know about the new garage
Obviously that would be awkward as hell but it's got to be better than sitting stressing about it for the next 6 months
I'm going to mention it next time I see him. Basically tell him to be aware that if it impacts me he'll be asked to get planning permission
Probably a bit awkward but hey ho,
Don't be a wally. Just get the council to check. They deal with this all the time. It's the process and is a damn site* less hassle than some daft threat to call the council and dealing witha neighbour who suddenly jas an axe to grind and a massive finished building he is reluctant to take down and may drag out in the courts.
Why are you trying to make life more awkward for yourself.
*Boomtish
tp - you are asking if you raise it with the planning people now but expect that he "should" (out of some undocumented code of neighbourly courtesy) have popped over to discuss it. If the first he finds out about your concerns is the planning officer turning up with a tape measure he might be asking "why the **** didn't tpbiker just pop next door when I started building this rather than calling the 'stazi'?"
on the one hand you thing there's no real relationship to destroy - let me assure you that the basic relationship where you say hello and take parcels in for each other is something which goes undervalued. Nothing (not even a 4m tall golf shed casting a shadow) will make you want to move house more than having fallen out with the neighbours and being in a constant game of who can be the slightly more passive aggressive **** to the other one. You've already shown how this goes - he builds shed, you wont take in his parcels. Don't underestimate the ability of your neighbour to be a dick...
The best course of action might be to have a nice conversation that says, "I'm sure what you are doing is probably within the letter of the rules, I hope it doesn't block out too much sun in my garden and leave me a soggy mess". Then continue being an adult, and pleasant to him with parcels etc. You are not asking him to change it, you are just making sure he knows you are a better person.
Spot the person who doesn't live in Edinburgh 🤣
Clearly conflicting opinions on how to deal with this!
I'm inclined to have a word, but to be clear he's not 'within the letter of the rules' based on my measurements yesterday!!
Think very carefully how you do that / word it. He may be 100% within the rules (e.g. if he's measured from the correct datum and you've measured from somewhere else - like the wrong side of the fence post). A "threat" to involve planning is probably not a good way to have a friendly neighbourhood relationship. Suddenly cars get scratched, packages get lost, "hello" becomes "a blank stare", your overhanging tree branch gets chopped down, and someone has a slightly loud party and then fists are flying or red faced angry threats are getting thrown around...Obviously that would be awkward as hell but it's got to be better than sitting stressing about it for the next 6 months
I'm going to mention it next time I see him. Basically tell him to be aware that if it impacts me he'll be asked to get planning permission
Probably a bit awkward but hey ho,
You might think that doesn't happen, but every day of the year someone in Scotland is in a court trying to explain that they might have told the neighbour they'd ****ing kill them if they didn't turn the music off but it all started 3 years ago when they lit a BBQ when their washing was out or some other conflict.
If you have a word be prepared to take it the whole hog and get the council involved. All-in or you sit quiet and sulk as a neighbour disagreement on record can also affect property values.
The time for a word IMO was when he started work - a huge outhouse doesn't get built in a day.
I appreciate your concern poly. The wall is 95cm from my side of the fence so I'm pretty sure I'm on safe ground there.
I'm not trying to threaten him though. My issue is if I don't tell him now he'll spend the next month finishing the build, fitting the electrics etc, then have even more work to undo!
Whilst neighbourly feuds do become nasty, I genuinely can't see that happening here. The guys is a mild mannered IT worker with a young family. I'd be pretty sure the worst scenario is we don't acknowledge each other in the driveway in the morning!
I'm yet to work out if the wall is definitely taller than 2.5m which it now needs to be. Not sure how I'd measure that one but I'm pretty sure it's taller than that based on how far above my 6 foot fence it is.
If it was just a couple of inches back from where they've built it it could be 4m tall and totally permitted - so thats double the height of your fence. If you're not sure it's more than 2.5m then it certainly can't be a lot more than 2.5m. And in both the case of the height and the position its so close to the permitted sizes that going through the permission process would likely just result in it being given permission as its impact varies so little.
Your concern basically through its the shadow it can cast and waiting to find out whether that'll be a concern - you can find that out right now with a free phone app so why allow yourself to get anxious about that? I can't really envisage a 2.5m structure @ 1m from the fence casting much more of a shadow than the fence itself does though.
I think either satisfy yourself that it will have the impact you fear - and then you've got a reasoned basis to raise the issue with him. Or discover that that impact isn't really anything to worry about and you can just feel a bit grumpy about it for a while and then let it pass.
The time for a word IMO was when he started work - a huge outhouse doesn't get built in a day.
You are correct. So first I found out about his intentions was when I saw him bringing in all the materials that he'd already bought. I questioned him and he said he was building the outhouse , i didn't appreciate the size of it though nor its position in garden at that time. He said he wouldn't require planning permission.
It was only when the walls went up (prefab so they literally went up in 2 hrs) that I was like 'whoa that's absolutely massive'. Wasn't just me who was surprised, my OH plus the other neighbour one house along were also fairly taken back by it.
We need pictures!
No idea how to attach pics!
Suspect is isn't great to be the neighbour of some with an axe to grind whilst grinding an axle...
I'd be flagging to the council right after having a quick chat with the neighbour to say you hadn't appreciated how large it was and how much it is likely to block sun from your garden. Worth also mentioning it isn't just you that is surprised by the height.
Council come.round, if it all legit then nothing else you can do...if it isn't, he has the chance to remedy it.
I've no idea what a golf simulator is, but does he really need a 4m height for a swing?
I've no idea what a golf simulator is, but does he really need a 4m height for a swing?
the 4m is limit is for the apex of a double pitched roof - so if your walls are 2.5m that allows for a traditional pitch of roof. The roof would have some cross bracing inside (unless theres some hefty steel work) so you wouldn't necessarily get that much height to swing your stick about inside.
If the building is single pitch or flat roofed then you're not allowed to go as high and the limit is 3m. Although a 3m flat roofed structure is probably more imposing than a 4m pitched roof with lower eaves
Measure the horizontal distance .
You have done that.
Measure the slope distance from your boundary to the top.
Then using Trigonometry work out the vertical height..
You can use a electronic distance measurer.
You could do this from the top of your fence and then add the fence height onto your calculation.
Neighbour relationships maybe more important though.
You are not asking him to change it, you are just making sure he knows you are a better person.
A better person stuck with a monstrosity overshadowing his garden.
You're a consistent voice of reason on here Poly, but I disagree with you on this. It's a binary situation, either the structure is compliant with regulations or it isn't, and that's for the council to decide. If it's compliant then TP has to suck it up, if it isn't then the neighbour must take it down. There is no third option to be had here that I can see.
I'm not sure what a 'nice conversation' would gain at this point. The time for a nice conversation has passed. Nice conversations should have been had before construction commenced. Nice conversations at this point are going to result in "**** off" and then the neighbour knows who dobbed them in to the authorities.
No idea how to attach pics!
Upload to a photo hosting site, copy the link.
Or get your hand in your pocket for a subscription. 😁
If it's compliant then TP has to suck it up, if it isn't then the neighbour must take it down. There is no third option to be had here that I can see.
There are several further options - it's assessed by planning and passed anyway, as 'permitted development' is just the conditions where you don't need to seek a planning decision, it doesn't dictate that planning permission can't be granted. It can be assessed and require some minor alteration to make it compliant, which given that its at least close to thresholds for permitted development is a more likely outcome than just flattening it. Or.... his neighbour can just move the fence 3 inches while the OP is out.
Ok, so I stuck a pole through the fence to measure the distance from my fence. 95cm, so less than a meter
People have lost their life savings over arguments about 5cm!!
It's not going to make any difference to your light wether it's sited at 95cm or 102cm from your boundary.
If you do not try to contest it then it will drive you mad and be worse and keep nagging you.