Overlooked garden ideas needed

NixCT

We are buying a house which is very overlooked from the side and the rear. We will be downhill from the houses behind us. Any ideas to get a bit of privacy that don't involve trees? We would prefer not to restrict our neighbours light if we can so looking for inspiration! Thanks in advance.

balcas

You can only have a fence 2 meters high without planning permission. It might pay to have a word with your neighbours, and possibly the local planning dept, to see if you can get away with some trellis on top of the fence and then grow some climbing plants over the trellis.

Red-Squirrel_2

It'll have to be tall plants/trees or a roofed structure of some kind like a garden room or a summer house.

How much does it matter though? What are you likely to be doing that you want privacy for? If its just normal gardening, pottering, barbecues, playing with the kids/dog etc/ then your neighbours won't care and will have no interest in watching you do it. If its naked hot tub parties, fair enough.

If you are downhill from the neighbours their light shouldn't be too much of a concern.

Badger50

If you haven't exchanged contracts yet I would recommend finding a house which isn't overlooked so much. But assuming you will not be doing that I would suggest some pergolas with climbers on them if they can be arranged so as to interupt the line of sight from the other houses.

Badger50

I'm not sure if it's relevant here but height restrictions on outbuildings on sloping land only apply at the highest point of the slope.

Cakeguts

Why are you buying a house that is very overlooked if you don't want to be overlooked? Is it cheaper because it is overlooked and so difficult to sell because most people don't want it because the garden is overlooked?



Most people when they buy a house don't buy one that has something about it that they really don't like.

datlex

What about a pergola or similar? To create a degree of privacy.

pinkshoes

By brother has plant pots with bamboo. It grows VERY tall!

(Don't plant it in the ground though)

Red-Squirrel_2

Cakeguts wrote: »

Most people when they buy a house don't buy one that has something about it that they really don't like.

Actually, I’d say most people have to compromise on at least one or two things, hardly anybody can afford a house that’s perfect for them in every way!

Mutton_Geoff

It's easy to walk around the outside of a property looking at all the neighbours 1st floor windows overlooking you, but unless any of those are living rooms or kitchen/diners, it is very unlikely you'll be troubled since most people don't stand around staring out of their bedroom and other 1st floor windows.


It's probably all about the impression of being overlooked than the reality.

Red-Squirrel wrote: »

How much does it matter though? What are you likely to be doing that you want privacy for? If its just normal gardening, pottering, barbecues, playing with the kids/dog etc/ then your neighbours won't care and will have no interest in watching you do it. If its naked hot tub parties, fair enough

Even naked hot tubs are fine as it's very British to avert one's gaze whilst these activities occur.

Novice_investor101

My garden would be considered to be horribly overlooked - it's in a row of victorian terraces, the gardens are quite large (more longer and narrower) but close together. We're also on a hill so the garden next door and the one opposite are slightly above me.

In reality, the hedges and fences shield me from the immediate neighbour's gardens, kitchen windows etc and i don't think for one minute that any of them stand at the spare bedroom or bathroom windows looking down on me. I have put some big planters on one side as the top of my patio is level with the top of the wall to next doors garden - ie i'll be looking right down on them/their patio furniture. The planters with some hedging solve that issue and afford me a bit or privacy too.

The gardens are still quite close - i can hear people easily and they can hear me. But we usually can't see each other apart from the one the other side of the planters. We get on well and after a polite hello just tend to leave each other be.

If it really bothers you that other people can see you in your garden then either look for another house or if that's not possible (it wasn't for me) look at whether you can afford to budget for a bit of landscaping to be done - fences, hedges, bamboo, pergolas, gazebo's etc