Architects have messed up. Next steps?

[flanagaj]

The architects who gained us our planning position appear to have messed up with regards to our boundary.   On our drawings it's showing at 1.4m, but when I measure from the road edge, I get about 600mm and it means that to build the house will require me to literally rip out the neighbours scrappy hedging.  At no point were we consulted about the boundary and who owned the messy hedging.  Surely, they should have been cautious and pulled it away from the hedge.

 

So I'm now completely miffed as what to do as it's a significant blocker.

[Alan Ambrose]

How big is the plot? Would it ‘make much difference’ if the dwelling was moved over a bit?

[flanagaj]

26 minutes ago, Alan Ambrose said:

How big is the plot? Would it ‘make much difference’ if the dwelling was moved over a bit?

The only viable option is to move the dwelling forward, but this will require another variation of condition application.

[nod]

I would move the house forward 

No one will pick you up over 600 mil 

 

[Gone West]

12 hours ago, flanagaj said:

On our drawings it's showing at 1.4m, but when I measure from the road edge, I get about 600mm

Is that measurement to the centre line of the hedge or your side of the hedge?

[flanagaj]

11 hours ago, Gone West said:

Is that measurement to the centre line of the hedge or your side of the hedge?

To the outside of the hedge on the neighbours side.  We don't own the hedge.

[Gus Potter]

On 08/10/2025 at 19:48, flanagaj said:

So I'm now completely miffed as what to do as it's a significant blocker.

Feal for you, what a scunner as we can see you have put lot's of effort into your design. Hopefully you can resolve it ok. 

 

Often boundaries are a bit vague, particularly in the country / rural. Main thing is to check and check again your deads and information, avoid if possible alerting your neighbours at this stage that there may be an issue.

 

Looking ahead, if less than 1.0m from a boundary often the fire regs (fire boundary condition) become more onerous. 

On 08/10/2025 at 19:48, flanagaj said:

At no point were we consulted about the boundary

I'm surprised your Architect failed to consult with you. It's something I do often as due dilligence, make sure that the Client understands and agrees the boundaries. 

 

[saveasteading]

Is it an ancient field hedge or a domestic one?

if agricultural then there is usually a fence as well, or the remnants of one, or of a gate.

 

Logically though, if that was planted as a field boundary within a farm, then the centre would be the boundary.

If planted as demarcation of two farms then there would be a fence first, of marker posts and then planting on the planter's  side, but then swallowing the fence up. So 200mm off centre?. Middle of hedge seems about right whatever.

 

Whatever, your designer should have kept 1m min away from it to avoid complexities. Decide what you want then tell them to sort it.

[Gone West]

13 hours ago, flanagaj said:

To the outside of the hedge on the neighbours side.  We don't own the hedge.

Although you don't own the hedge the boundary should be the centre line of the hedge plant trunks.

[Mr Punter]

Where did your topo survey show the hedge?

[flanagaj]

I'm going to ask the surveyor to come out and mark the position of the house.  I won't mention the proximity of the house to the hedge, until he's finished staking it out.  I'll then drag out the architects site plan and say "Oh, that's interesting.  I've got 1.2m on here, but only 500mm in reality"

[saveasteading]

If you use Google Earth, you  an look at older aerial views, sometimes back to wartime 19402, to see if the hedge was there then. perhaps you'll see a fence or smaller hedge?

[SteamyTea]

15 hours ago, saveasteading said:

sometimes back to wartime 19402,

Will that be one of the wars against AI.

 

 

 

[saveasteading]

S isn't even near 2 on the keyboard. 2illy me.

Carele22.

Edited October 12 by saveasteading

[Nickfromwales]

Defo a typo I won’t be editing out lol.

[marmic]

if there's a ditch too, or trace of one, look up 'hedge and ditch presumption' if there are boundary doubts/unknowns/disputes - but doesn't always apply either. Might be helpful?

[flanagaj]

So the surveyor came back to site yesterday and marked out the building.  He put pegs in the ground with a 1m offset.  The peg at the North Eastern part of the building is smack bang in the middle of the hedge.  Below is an image of the hedge line.  As you can see it's a load of Hazel that was never maintained as a hedge and is therefore quite thick at ground level (18")

So given I don't own the hedge, it's not going to be possible to remove it to said peg without ripping the whole lot out.   I don't want to risk moving the house forward, without going via the official route of submitting a Section 73 application. 

This has caused us a real headache and have no idea how to proceed now.

 

[flanagaj]

Just to add, the approved site plan shows the below.  I have absolutely no idea how 1.2 was arrived at.  I have sent the original architects an email asking for their input. 

I assume that as we hired an architect and paid for the topographic survey which was instructed by the architect, liability for any cock up lies with one of them? 

[Gone West]

4 hours ago, flanagaj said:

He put pegs in the ground with a 1m offset.

If I'm following you correctly, the centre line of the hedge is 1m from where the side of the house will be, and the drawing shows 1.2m. I don't understand what the problem is, as your boundary is the the centre line of the hedge which is only 200mm different from the drawing. We moved our house around 0.5m, from the drawings, to give ourselves more working space. We didn't tell anyone and there were no repercussions. I wouldn't worry about things like that.

Edited Sunday at 11:53 by Gone West

[flanagaj]

1 hour ago, Gone West said:

If I'm following you correctly, the centre line of the hedge is 1m from where the side of the house will be, and the drawing shows 1.2m. I don't understand what the problem is, as your boundary is the the centre line of the hedge which is only 200mm different from the drawing. We moved our house around 0.5m, from the drawings, to give ourselves more working space. We didn't tell anyone and there were no repercussions. I wouldn't worry about things like that.

Spoken with such nonchalance.  Such advice, could in theory result in enforcement and you having to tear your house down.  

[saveasteading]

3 hours ago, Gone West said:

wouldn't worry about things like that.

You've engaged professionals for your design. Get their decision on the resolution to this. If you're happy with it, get it in writing and carry on. Assuming they have proper  PI insurance (you should already have details of it)  then they are liable.

[Gone West]

1 hour ago, flanagaj said:

Such advice, could in theory result in enforcement and you having to tear your house down.  

As you say, in theory, but in reality who is going to worry about 200mm difference in a site measurement.

[flanagaj]

25 minutes ago, Gone West said:

As you say, in theory, but in reality who is going to worry about 200mm difference in a site measurement.

200mm doesn't cut it.  The house needs moving 500mm

[saveasteading]

45 minutes ago, Gone West said:

In reality who is going to worry about 200mm difference in a site

People can get very touchy about boundaries. I think it is a territorial instinct.

But if it ever got legal you only have to have made "reasonable efforts".

[marmic]

agree to be cautious before building.  hopefully you have written evidence of where the boundary actually is? (and land registry plans don't always reflect accurately whats on the ground/history etc).

 

if you don't have 100% evidence of boundary:

Looks like a ditch in photo - or could be an optical illusion on photo where hedge banked up?  In the event of a dispute the 'hedge and ditch presumption' could put the boundary on your side of ditch - if there is one?  But hopfully you'll have something concrete to the contrary - talking of concrete, and if this is a ditch, hopefully your engineer has taken this into account + any water flow / roots. sorry to sound negative but all stuff to throw back at architect if not already covered - if applicable. Watercourses (even 'just ditches' are plotted on some maps) 

On a positive note however if there is a ditch on the other side (??) you might find the boundary is there. The way the hedge is banked up would indicate there is or was a ditch one side or the other.

 

If blue on marked up image is a ditch the boundary could be the red - or the opposite if ditch is other side.