What is the High hedge legislation?
- Part 8 of the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 allows councils to deal with complaints about high hedges. We review if a hedge's height harms a neighbour's enjoyment of their home or garden. If it does, we can order the hedge owner to fix the problem and prevent it from happening again.
If a neighbour's hedge troubles you, the best way to deal with the issue is to talk to them about it. It would be in both your interests to try and sort the matter out.
As neighbours, you have to continue to live near each other, so it’s better if you are on good terms. Calling the council without first talking to your neighbour could make things worse.
Before talking with your neighbour, you may want to be clear about how the hedge affects you. For example, the hedge:
- blocks light and sunshine to the rooms in your house
- spills into your garden and is affecting the growth of your plants
- is damaging or pushing against your fence
- the roots are damaging your path or property.
Contacting us about a high hedge
When contacting us, we will want to know if the hedge is:
- growing on land owned or occupied by someone else
- made up of a line of two or more trees or shrubs
- mainly evergreen or semi-evergreen
- higher than two metres tall
- a barrier to light or access.
You can only contact us about a problem that you have in a home that you own or occupy. You will need to explain what, and how serious, those problems are. Please note, the legislation does not allow us to deal with every problem.