On 13 April 2021, the neighbour made a self-referral for support. If youre having trouble writing the complaint, a relative or friend or Citizens Advice may be able to help. It said if the resident felt in danger, then he should call the Councils Enforcement team and leave a message and insist that they visit the flat. It advised that there was an ongoing investigation about the issues he has raised. Collecting written evidence from you and your neighbour and visiting the site will make sure that the council have the information they need to make the right decision. Further, despite the resident reporting further instances of loud music, hammering and banging over the subsequent two weeks, there is no evidence to show the landlord acted on these reports. Serves them right, even though they could not sleep, they were all too limp to report someone they feared. . The conclusion by the ASB officer was that they would write to warn to the neighbour about the noise nuisance but that they were not convinced there was a case to investigate or keep open any longer. For example, give details of the position, type and height of the hedges trees or shrubs and, if you wish, include a plan. We have 5,219 pages of rights advice for you covering 10,545 companies and organisations across 16 public & private sectors. It was noted that there were no burn marks and flat was tidy. We use cookies to ensure that we provide you with the best possible experience on our website. If your neighbour has broken the law He then resumed today at 1pm today and is still going strong. Theyll indicate where the boundary is and might say whos responsible for the tree or hedge. Clearly explain: Stick to the facts and give all relevant information to back up your points. But in some cases the council will decide that its right to refund all or part of a fee. Contact your local council. As the landlord found no actionable evidence of noise issues, it stated that mediation was the best option to resolve matter. If it is, youll have to ask the council for permission to cut the tree even if its yours. Advice for people affected by child abuse. Email Customer Services on customerservice@hounslow.gov.uk. It arranged a joint visit with its Fire Officer to inspect the neighbours flat the following week and requested a meeting with the neighbours care coordinator to discuss the incident. More information on the cookies we set can be found in our cookie policy. There is no evidence to show the landlord acted on this report. The Housing Ombudsmans approach to investigating and determining complaints is to decide what is fair in all the circumstances of the case. I gave up with the authorities. On 19 January 2021, the resident reported. Due the neighbour having mental health issues, the landlord had a responsibility to engage with support agencies in order to help, maintain his tenancy and also establish an action plan to address and mitigate the impact of ASB on those affected including the resident. Phone. This notice sets out what must be done to the hedge and when it must be done by. Having reviewed the actions taken it was satisfied that the case was managed satisfactorily. with her how she could minimise any noise generated. They might ask the owner to make it safe or deal with it themselves. Information and translations of Hounslow in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. . If it is, then councils can order the owner of a high hedge to take action to put right the problem and stop it from happening again. If you think your neighbour's tree is dangerous, you can report it to the council - for example if you think it might fall over. You need to keep a log of all the incidents so you can accurately report the issue. This and the lack of detail and explanation given in its responses was unreasonable and evidence of poor complaint handling. Its an offence to fail to do what a remedial notice requires. We couldn't complain to the council as we owned the house and if we sold we would have to inform the new owners. Call Out of hours emergency on 020 8583 2222. The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any maladministration, for example whether the landlord has failed to keep to the law, followed proper procedure, followed good practice or behaved in a reasonable and competent manner. Hounslow council only have 'noise teams' for Friday and Saturday night but no other day of the week. He complained about the risk to the whole block and said he could not keep calling the Fire Brigade. 18 May and 19 November 2020, the landlord made 22 visits to the property to assess noise in response to 50 reports of noise made by the resident. It is noted that the landlord enquired about the installation of noise monitoring equipment on 19 May 2020. But the legislation doesnt allow councils to deal with every problem that might be caused by hedges. As at the date of its final response on 4 June 2021 the landlord advised the resident that its investigation into his ASB reports about his neighbour was ongoing. This Investigation will not consider the landlords handling of the events in 2018 as they were not raised as a formal complaint until March 2020 which is more than six months after the events occurred, as the Ombudsman expects formal complaints to be made within a reasonable period of the matter arising which is usually six months. Hounslow Council 29April 2022 Our approach The Housing Ombudsman's approach to investigating and determining complaints is to decide what is fair in all the circumstances of the case. DIGITAL SPY, PART OF THE HEARST UK ENTERTAINMENT NETWORK. The landlords internal file note dated 9 June 2020 show its ASB officer interviewed the residents neighbour about noise and ASB reports raised by the resident. London Borough of Hounslow delayed in assisting a homeless man with mental health issues finds Local Government Ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin. On 3 September 2020, the resident called the landlord to report hearing loud music from his neighbours flat at 1.45 am that morning. The resident asserted that the noise persisted, and the landlord had not offered a solution to the issue; therefore, he requested that it escalate the complaint. Bloody ridiculous people have to put up with these selfish sod neighbours! The complaint was logged with the Housing Officer in August 2020. The Ombudsmans role is not to establish whether particular events occurred; for example, it is not our role to assess whether antisocial behaviour happened. These were reasonable efforts made by it to witness the noise reports he made. Reacting to the sentence, Councillor Tom Bruce, cabinet member for regeneration and development at Hounslow Council, said: "I hope this prosecution and hefty fine sends a strong signal that we . We used to go to work shattered. that there was a burning smell coming from his neighbours property two days earlier. If the problem continues, youll need to get help from a solicitor who specialises in neighbour disputes - but this will be expensive. It stated that it would provide an update by 24 March 2020. This report is not an exhaustive description of all the events that have occurred in relation to this case, but an outline of the key issues as a background to the investigations findings. As such, there was no maladministration in the way the landlord responded to the residents reports of noise nuisance. The landlords internal notes show it contacted Adult Mental health team who confirmed which team the resident was under the care of. It was working with other services to assess the residents vulnerability and explore the possibility of moving him to an alternative accommodation on a permanent basis. Police refused to do anything, and environmental health were even more useless. We had a similar issue with students that went on for about 11 months. Before referral to court the HO must undertake an assessment to establish whether the possible outcome of any court action would affect the health and safety of any person in line with the Equality Act. Claiming compensation for a personal injury, Help for victims of rape and sexual violence, Keeping your family in the UK after Brexit, Getting a visa for your spouse or partner, check if its protected by a Tree Preservation Order, Check what to do if you think a hedge is too high, Check if you can get help with legal costs. https://www.definitions.net/definition/Hounslow. For extreme cases the nuisance neighbours can be evicted or rehoused. Whilst the landlord has to take steps to address ASB in line with its ASB policy, it has a responsibility to balance this with the needs of its vulnerable residents including those who may be the perpetrators of ASB. Contact your local councillor. The complaint was not upheld as it said the investigation was still ongoing and was being carried out satisfactorily and in accordance with the landlords policy. The neighbour whom the ASB reports concern, lives next door to the resident and is a tenant of the landlord. Further he said that the warning signs were there, and action needed to be taken before something serious happened. Hounslow Council Contact Information. It is noted that the country was in lockdown during this timeframe as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic which may have impacted on the landlords ability to provide its usual service. This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the Scheme). This shows the landlord considered legal action to evict the neighbour however as its ASB policy sets out legal obligations the landlord has to vulnerable residents including when pursuing possession, it is reasonable to expect the landlord to have contacted its Legal team for advice on this issue to ensure it was fully aware of all options. an agenda or that he was making up this complaint. Complaining about your neighbour This advice applies to England If your neighbour is noisy or stops you feeling comfortable, try to discuss it with them if you can. This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The landlord carried out a risk assessment on 27 August 2020 with the neighbour following which it discussed their case with other agencies and identified an action plan to assist and support him. Despite the resident making further reports to the landlord of the same issue in January and March 2021, there is. Ask them to keep their dog inside at night or to impose a curfew for their child's drum practice. For example, the hedge might help to make the area an attractive and pleasant place. It also said it would keep him updated on the progress. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. If you do anything more than trim overhanging branches, your neighbour could take you to court for damaging their property. I gave up with the authorities. Neither did it respond to the residents request for an update on 14 April 2020 or to his further report made on 14 May 2020 of loud music and banging early in the morning. waiting for the lift. The resident said he was tired of complaining. Mohammed Ali Khan, 45, of Thornbury Road, was found guilty of instructing a contractor to demolish a building without notifying the Local Authority as required by section 80(2) of the Building Act 1984 after a trial at Uxbridge Magistrates Court on February 3. None of these visits recorded any evidence to prompt enforcement action. the landlord should work with other agencies and service providers in order to determine the best course of action to take in order to resolve the situation. On 30 April 2021, the landlord assessed whether it was proportionate to escalate the action it was taking against the neighbour taking into account his vulnerabilities. the landlords handling of the residents reports concerning antisocial behaviour from his neighbour. An action plan was agreed in August 2020 which included several actions both to address the ASB and mitigate the effects of his ASB, which was appropriate. The landlord also failed to sufficiently communicate with the resident in response to his ASB reports and did not provide information on the progress of its investigation. He had already raised his concerns previously and his safety was important. Comply with above orders within four weeks. It might be worth reading Hedge height and light loss. So stick some Motorhead or Slayer on full blast and try and wake the bastard up Once again, thanks. He said that the neighbour was also verbally abusive which frightened his children. Is there anything wrong with this page? concern that the neighbour was increasing the level of noise in retaliation to its intervention and that his only recourse was to seek alternative accommodation. A report by Hounslow Council's Standards Sub-committee, which was due to be published as the paper went to press this week, is believed to be highly critical of Councillor Mohinder Gill. This includes occasions when it failed to respond to the residents communications within a reasonable timeframe, only responding after the resident contacted, a response. The council cant get involved in helping you get back the fee that youve paid and certainly cant force your neighbour to repay you. Check what to do if you think a hedge is too high on GOV.UK. The landlord noted that, on its visit to the property on 24 February 2020, the resident. On 24 March 2021, the landlord provided an update to the resident. If the dispute arises from lifestyle differences and no tenancy breach is found, then it shall offer mediation. At tim. If that doesn't work there are other ways you can ask them to stop, for example by reporting them to the council. Image above: Hounslow Council Budget meeting, Tuesday 2 March 2021. In the event of an emergency, such as if your neighbour physically attacks you, always call 999. the terms of his tenancy. Web. You can find your councils website on GOV.UK. The out of hours service is designed for emergencies only. You will need to explain what, and how serious, those problems are. News stories, speeches, letters and notices, Reports, analysis and official statistics, Data, Freedom of Information releases and corporate reports. I have a neighbour. The council can issue a noise abatement order if they believe the noise levels to be unreasonable. No. Definition of Hounslow in the Definitions.net dictionary. Visiting Hounslow House. But you can still try to settle your dispute by following the steps in Over the garden hedge. The council might also have to allow extra time to protect birds nesting in the hedge. Your neighbour could report it to your local council and you could be told to cut your hedge. Videos on managing unacceptable behaviour. The landlords policy says on receiving the initial report, the HO would make an initial assessment to determine a plan of action and to make a referral to the ASB team for Grade 1 & 2 cases. It advised him to call the Councils Enforcement when there was a smoke incident. The lease started on 10 July 2017. If you still cant agree, you can get help from a mediator - this is someone who doesnt know either of you and is trained to help people resolve disagreements. The landlords notes reference that the neighbour had confirmed during this visit that he was burning paper in this flat. On 18 March 2020, the landlord advised that the matter will be investigated as soon as possible and asked that the resident to be sure to record incidents in diary sheets in the meantime. Whilst it is acknowledged that the landlord must adhere to rules when sharing personal data from one party to another, it is reasonable to expect the landlord to manage the residents expectations about what action it was taking to tackle the issues and provide regular reports of its progress. It explained that the complaint process was not a means for punishing residents and it approached complaints impartially, based on the available evidence. The landlords advice to the resident on 20 March 2020 that his neighbour had been taken to hospital that morning for treatment indicates it had been in communication with his care worker at this time. The resident first reported noise from music/TV disturbance to the landlord on 24, its noise team on 30 July 2019. Pets that bark or squawk loudly and constantly can fall under this but a new-born baby crying is unlikely to be classed as a statutory nuisance. He said he was concerned about calling the Councils Enforcement team as he did not want to jeopardise his or his familys safety. If they were to smell the cannabis themselves, they might knock on the door and broach the subject that way. The resident contacted the landlord again on 20 March 2020 complaining about the length of time taken to act on his reports. To manage and tackle ASB the landlord may send the perpetrator an ASB warning letter, engage with agencies including the police, social services, community mental health teams or other support agencies. In its response of 29 May 2020, the landlord told the resident that: there were complex issues relating to GDPR so it was unable to discuss matters relating to the neighbour. Rather, the Ombudsman seeks to establish whether a landlord has responded reasonably to reports made to it that are its responsibility to address and whether it acted in accordance with its relevant policies and procedures. The landlords policy refers to interviewing the reporter and providing incident diary sheets where relevant. subsequently interviewed the resident on 11 March 2020 however this service has not been provided with any notes of this meeting. The most effective way to request a service or report something to the Council is through our standard customer contact channels. The landlords file notes confirm it had a joint meeting with the relevant support teams on 24 March 2021 to discuss this case and what action to take going forward. We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services. It kept happening and he was going around in circles. Grade 2 cases include noise nuisance outside of permitted hours and verbal abuse. They might, for example, measure the size of your garden or how far the hedge is from windows in your home. If someone breaks an abatement order about noise from their home, they can be fined up to 5,000. This. The resident raised a stage one complaint with the landlord on 10 March 2020 in which he, he had raised numerous concerns with the landlord about the excessive loud TV which he believed originated from the flat above his own. The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any maladministration, for example whether the landlord has failed to keep to the law, followed proper procedure, followed good practice or behaved in a reasonable and competent manner. When councils are determining a complaint they must first decide whether the height of the high hedge is having an adverse effect on a neighbours enjoyment of their home and/or its garden or yard. The resident said that he had previously mentioned this serious and dangerous behaviour to the landlord and so far, no action had been taken. On 30 April 2021, the landlord visited the neighbour to deliver him a warning letter stating he was breaching. that the landlord failed to act appropriately or reasonably when handling the residents reports. You must tell your neighbour in advance if a tree surgeon needs to go on their land. Chapters 4 and 5 of High hedges complaints: prevention and cure include detailed guidance for councils on the sorts of hedge problems they can and cant deal with. While it acknowledged in its response on 21 April 2020 that it should have given him notice of the mediation meeting, it was. The resident said the issues had gone on for years. It also advised him of the importance of it witnessing the reported noise to be able to take further action. On 29 April 2021, the landlord provided a stage one response. The council should decide whether the hedge is adversely affecting your reasonable enjoyment of your property and, if so, what action (if any) should be taken to put right the situation or stop it happening again. The landlord emailed the resident on 12 August 2020 confirming that they had visited the neighbours flat. Get specialist help from a tree surgeon if the roots of your neighbours tree are affecting your home and garden. There are different ways to deal with the problem depending on who owns the tree or hedge. Save time, and do it online . This is set out in the Housing Act 1996 and the Housing Ombudsman Scheme (the Scheme). when we had a nuisance neighbour it was near on impossible to get rid of him. The council will let the neighbour know that youve complained, so bear this in mind when youre writing the complaint. No. Happy to be corrected! We could take no more so we sold up and moved, it took us a year to sell. Complaints about pay rise for councillors. Its a good idea to ask your council if they can help you find a mediator. This guide and the related spreadsheet can help you work out whether an evergreen hedge is blocking too much daylight and sunlight to your home or garden. 1 Noise is one of the most common neighbour complaints Credit: Getty You can buy the documents from the Land Registry if you dont have them - it only costs a few pounds. Housing Neighbour nuisance and anti-social behaviour Speak Neighbour nuisance and anti-social behaviour This fact sheet is aimed primarily at people having problems getting the council to deal with anti-social behaviour near their homes and who may be considering making a complaint to the Ombudsman. Once theyve got all this information, the council will weigh it all up. You cant be sure what the result will be. It may consider legal action against those in breach of their tenancy agreement however possession is a last resort in abating ASB. It did engage, after an incident involving the police and Fire brigade, owever at times there was little or no progression of the action plan despite on going reports from the resident. All rights reserved. Check if you can get help with legal costs. It also explained that whilst there were some discussions with the neighbour about a possible move this was not something he wanted to do at that time. Your neighbour can cut any branches that are overhanging into their garden as long as they only remove the bits on their side of the boundary. The Ombudsman considers the evidence and looks to see if there has been any 'maladministration', for example . Subsidence can be caused by a hedges roots taking moisture from soils that shrink. 2023 Hearst UK is the trading name of the National Magazine Company Ltd, 30 Panton Street, Leicester Square, London, SW1Y 4AJ. The landlord emailed the resident on 21 April 2020 to acknowledge his request to escalate the complaint and replied to his points as follows: It disagreed that its response implied that the residents complaint was malicious; it asserted that it had found no fault with its approach to this case. They must also think about effects on the neighbourhood. The landlords complaint process states it will log a complaint when it receives one. Grade 1 cases include damage to property. Provide the Ombudsman and the resident with further details in relation to its statement that it will explore securing a permanent move for the neighbour as referred to in its 8 April 2022 communication. This guide explains the powers that local authorities have to deal with disputes between neighbours about high hedges, and how home owners and occupiers can complain to the local authority about such hedges.
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