Hello there, sorry if this should be in another forum (or on another site altogether), I just figured you guys might have an idea what to do here.
Council property. We moved in as tennants in 2000. The field at the bottom of the house had an approx 1.5 metre x 6m strip between our fence and some bushes which was being used as a meeting place/hidey hole for the local teenage chavs who were getting up to all sorts and leaving it a right old mess with bottles, rubbish, the occasional fire and other nasties. I decided the quickest way to sort out the problem would be to move our fence back right up to the bushes, closing the gap off....I was right - problem solved.
Anyway in 2009 we bought the house from the council. I mentioned the small strip of land at the time, but nobody wanted to speak to me about it. Thus our deeds show the old boundary as it was.
I'm wondering where we stand legally (Adverse Possession law - or whatever it has became?) with this strip of land. I don't so much want to *pinch* it - if the council comes back to me either saying they'll sell it, or they want it back and are going to do something with it - then great - I just don't want to have to move the fence and have this lovely little clean and tidy little strip be noticed again by the local hoodlums and turned into a mini drinking/dumping/dogging/drugging spot.
Any ideas?
Council property. We moved in as tennants in 2000. The field at the bottom of the house had an approx 1.5 metre x 6m strip between our fence and some bushes which was being used as a meeting place/hidey hole for the local teenage chavs who were getting up to all sorts and leaving it a right old mess with bottles, rubbish, the occasional fire and other nasties. I decided the quickest way to sort out the problem would be to move our fence back right up to the bushes, closing the gap off....I was right - problem solved.
Anyway in 2009 we bought the house from the council. I mentioned the small strip of land at the time, but nobody wanted to speak to me about it. Thus our deeds show the old boundary as it was.
I'm wondering where we stand legally (Adverse Possession law - or whatever it has became?) with this strip of land. I don't so much want to *pinch* it - if the council comes back to me either saying they'll sell it, or they want it back and are going to do something with it - then great - I just don't want to have to move the fence and have this lovely little clean and tidy little strip be noticed again by the local hoodlums and turned into a mini drinking/dumping/dogging/drugging spot.
Any ideas?