School Hedge cutting advise needed

[anonymous-user]

Good afternoon all,

I am working with a school and we are installing a new perimeter fence (No planning permission required) and the council are happy with what we are proposing.

We have issues with a number of neighbors regarding what we are doing with the existing hedge. We are cutting the hedge back to the legal boundary and trimming it down to 6 inches, all inside the schools boundary. We are then installing the fence and planting new hedges to help the existing hedge to rejuvenate.

I am having all sorts of issues with the neighbors after letting them know what we are doing. After chatting to some most are happy but we still have neighbors stating the wont give permission for us to trim our hedge.

All hedge cutting is planned to be completed before the nesting season starts (RSPB) and hedge cutting is being done in line with advice from the RHS on hedge rejuvenation.

Any advise welcome

[Scrump]

Are you asking permission to access the neighbours land in order to cut the hedge?
If it is your hedge (which it sounds like it is) then can you cut it back without accessing neighbours land?
The neighbours can only prevent to you accessing their land, I don’t see how they can stop you trimming your own hedge from your own land.

[anonymous-user]

Scrump said:

Are you asking permission to access the neighbours land in order to cut the hedge?
If it is your hedge (which it sounds like it is) then can you cut it back without accessing neighbours land?
The neighbours can only prevent to you accessing their land, I don’t see how they can stop you trimming your own hedge from your own land.

We do not require any access to neighboring land, all work is to be carried out from the school side of the boundary. Do you know if there is any legislation to prove I can trim my own hedge back (it sounds very odd asking that haha)

[sociopath]

If it's your hedge, they can't stop you cutting it back or even removing it, only scenario would be if it was a protected feature

[Bill]

It's the school's issue, surely. You're just the contractor doing what the school has told you to.

[anonymous-user]

sociopath said:

If it's your hedge, they can't stop you cutting it back or even removing it, only scenario would be if it was a protected feature

My exact understanding that it can be trimmed up to the boundary (we have no intention to go beyond), do you know if there is any legislation?

[Lonely]

Politely tell the neighbours to mind their own business or contact the school/council if they think they have legal concerns. If it is council owned land then I'm sure they will have access to any relevant legislation although I cannot see why you'd need it to carry out work on your own property.

[Scrump]

I doubt you will find legislation saying you can do something, I think legislation usually prevents things being done.

I had a similar experience with a hedge and trees on the boundary of my property. I started cutting it back (from my land) and the neighbours came round and complained because they liked the hedge. When I carried on they called in the council by mentioning a TPO. Council turned up, said no TPO on the trees I was working on so no reason why I couldn’t carry on.
I would think it is up to your neighbours to identify legislation/reasons which would stop you.

[sociopath]

MonkeyMatt said:

sociopath said:

If it's your hedge, they can't stop you cutting it back or even removing it, only scenario would be if it was a protected feature

My exact understanding that it can be trimmed up to the boundary (we have no intention to go beyond), do you know if there is any legislation?

I hope not as I'm completely removing my hedge this spring

[98elise]

MonkeyMatt said:

sociopath said:

If it's your hedge, they can't stop you cutting it back or even removing it, only scenario would be if it was a protected feature

My exact understanding that it can be trimmed up to the boundary (we have no intention to go beyond), do you know if there is any legislation?

If the hedge is inside the boundary, how do you only trim up to the boundary? The bit on their side isn't connected to anything once you trim it!

As someone else has said, you could remove it's entirely if you wanted to. The neighbours don't have any rights to the hedge.

[mrsshpub]

You've done the right thing in checking what the RSPB says about hedge trimming and I'm sure you also know that it's illegal to disturb nesting birds.

However, birds don't read the guidelines & some are already nest-building, so please make sure you check the hedge very carefully before cutting it back.

[anonymous-user]

mrsshpub said:

You've done the right thing in checking what the RSPB says about hedge trimming and I'm sure you also know that it's illegal to disturb nesting birds.

However, birds don't read the guidelines & some are already nest-building, so please make sure you check the hedge very carefully before cutting it back.

We surveyed the hedge line prior to works starting and are inspection sections as we work. We have even contacted a local hedgehog rescue should we disturb any and have boxes of leaves and straw ready just in case. I will also be planting 2,000 new native hedging shrubs and have secure 150 tree saplings from a charity. There really is no pleasing some people.

[mrsshpub]

MonkeyMatt said:

We surveyed the hedge line prior to works starting and are inspection sections as we work. We have even contacted a local hedgehog rescue should we disturb any and have boxes of leaves and straw ready just in case. I will also be planting 2,000 new native hedging shrubs and have secure 150 tree saplings from a charity.

Great stuff! I just wish everyone was so aware of the potential issues with hedge cutting at this time of year.

MonkeyMatt said:

There really is no pleasing some people.

I trust that wasn't directed at me.....

[anonymous-user]

98elise said:

MonkeyMatt said:

sociopath said:

If it's your hedge, they can't stop you cutting it back or even removing it, only scenario would be if it was a protected feature

My exact understanding that it can be trimmed up to the boundary (we have no intention to go beyond), do you know if there is any legislation?

If the hedge is inside the boundary, how do you only trim up to the boundary? The bit on their side isn't connected to anything once you trim it!

As someone else has said, you could remove it's entirely if you wanted to. The neighbours don't have any rights to the hedge.

The original boundary fence is inside the hedge (it is very overgrown and badly maintained, some hedging shrubs are growing the other side of the boundary and these will not be touched. We are only going to trim up to that line so we can preserve as much hedge as possible, we have already successfully installed a few hundred meters so far

[anonymous-user]

mrsshpub said:

MonkeyMatt said:

We surveyed the hedge line prior to works starting and are inspection sections as we work. We have even contacted a local hedgehog rescue should we disturb any and have boxes of leaves and straw ready just in case. I will also be planting 2,000 new native hedging shrubs and have secure 150 tree saplings from a charity.

Great stuff! I just wish everyone was so aware of the potential issues with hedge cutting at this time of year.

MonkeyMatt said:

There really is no pleasing some people.

I trust that wasn't directed at me.....

OMG not at all, no pleasing the neighbors! I'm the one who advocated not destroying the hedge, as the initial plan was to dig it up and not replace it.

Edited by MonkeyMatt on Tuesday 23 February 16:06

[Muncher]

You don't need their permission to trim your own hedge.

[Corvid-2020]

Tell them the new hedge saplings have been given the AZ vaccine and the hedge will protect any Covid particles from the little ones at school floating out the field and into their garden.

I thought about that approach when a tree surgen cutting back the neighbours tree left a load of albeit small branches on our lawn and when I asked when he was coming round to tidy up (as I wanted to mow the lawn) he told me "can only work in one garden a day, can pick them up due to Covid regs" (in a Dawgz accent, no suprise). So when he was working on the neighbours bush round the back I transferred the branches into his unlocked driver side of his transit. He did see the funny side and apologised to me as I was mowing my lawn - only took three minutes for each to do our deed. Told me his bosses rules!

[Durzel]

I can’t be the only one genuinely curious how these neighbours plan to actually stop a hedge inside the boundary of private property from being cut. Are they going to protest from the kerb?

[Sebring440]

The OP is clearly a business (a contractor), so rather than posting on a motoring internet forum, should this business not be consulting their solicitors as the any legal implications?

[jules_s]

So the fence is a hedge width inside the boundary??