The day a Leeds resident returned home to discover he couldn't open his window
Hunslet in the 1990s: The extension which left a householder unable to open his landing window fully
This Leeds resident had a shock when he returned home from a few days away.
Joiner John Cook found an extension had been built next door which was only 15 inches away from his home in Hunslet.
The discovery prompted the 40-year-old to lodge a protest with the Ombudsman and demand that the extension on Leasowe Road be pulled down. Leeds City Council’s planning officers also launched an investigation as to how permission was granted.
John said before the incident he and his girlfriend Irene were on good terms with their neighbours Brian and Mandy Hart.
“Now they don’t speak to us, although we would still speak to them,” said John. “But Brian never consulted me about his plans. I knew he wanted to stay here and needed to extend his house because Mandy was expecting a baby.”
He added “ It is just not possible now to maintain the gable end wall and point the brickwork and we cannot open our landing properly.”
Previously there was a gap of several feet between the two houses.