RDC accused of sitting on fence

Dennis Franklin, of Royston Gardens, informed the planning office that at over seven feet, it is too high and should have planning permission.

However Mr Franklin has been told that the extra height of between 6-16cm was not enough to worry about.

He told the Observer: “I am very disappointed.

“I don’t think they want to be bothered – they are looking for an excuse not to do anything.”

Mr Franklin, who is 83, claims his neighbour’s fence is 7ft 3in in places – three inches higher than the limit at which a planning applicaton should be made.

He also believes it is dangerous in places and likely to fall down, as does wife Irene who said: “We are both handicapped.

“I am disabled. I like to spend most of my time sitting in the garden, but I can’t anymore.”

Rother District Council’s head of planning Tim Hickling said: “While the council is not unsympathetic to Mr Franklin’s concerns, the reality is we are talking about tiny fractions in this case.

“A boundary fence under two metres tall does not require planning permission. A Rother enforcement officer visited in September to measure the fence and found it was only six centimetres over this limit in places and no more than 16 centimetres over at its tallest point.

“This is barely noticeable and has very little impact in the locality.

“Whilst this is a technical breach, at a time when resources need to be spent in areas of greatest need, it was not considered in the public interest to use officer time and tax payers’ money to pursue any legal proceedings based on such fine margins.”