The short answer
It depends on whether your work is covered by the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
| Your work | Can your neighbour refuse access? | What gives you the right |
|---|---|---|
| Covered by the Act, for example cutting into a party wall, raising it or digging next to a neighbour’s foundations | Not if you follow the Act. You have a right of entry to carry out that work. | Section 8: usual working hours, on at least 14 days’ notice (less in an emergency) |
| Repair or maintenance of your own building that the Act does not cover | Yes, unless a court orders otherwise | Your neighbour’s consent, or a court order under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 |
| An improvement or extension that the Act does not cover | Yes | Your neighbour’s consent. The 1992 Act is aimed at repair and maintenance, not improvement. |
Access under the Party Wall Act
If the work is work to which the Act applies, Section 8 gives you, your workmen and your agents a right to enter your neighbour’s land or premises to carry it out. The main rules are:
- Notice. You must give the owner and the occupier notice at least 14 days before you enter. In an emergency, you give notice as early as is reasonably practicable. This is separate from the notice that starts the party wall process.
- Hours. Entry is during usual working hours.
- Purpose. The right is for the work the Act covers, not for every convenience a project happens to need. Where the work needs a scaffold on the neighbour’s side, the award normally records where it goes, on which days and at what hours.
- Furniture. The right includes moving furniture or fittings where that is necessary for the work.
- Locked premises. If the premises are closed, workmen may only force an entrance with a police officer present.
- Surveyors. A surveyor acting under the Act has a matching right to enter in usual working hours, on notice from the building owner.
- Protection. You must not cause unnecessary inconvenience, you must protect any part of your neighbour’s property that you lay open, and you must compensate for loss or damage the work causes. See Section 7 and party wall awards.
If the Act does not cover your work
Without the Act, you have no right to step onto your neighbour’s land or to put anything over it. That includes a scaffold, a ladder, a crane jib that swings over their garden and a builder who just pops round to fix something. Doing it without permission can be a trespass, and an injunction can stop the job.
Your options, in the order most people try them:
- Ask, in writing. Say what the work is, where the scaffold or access will be, for how long, on which days and between what hours. Say who is insured, and offer to make good any damage. Offer a record of the condition of their property before you start, such as a schedule of condition. Some owners also offer a modest payment for the inconvenience. The law does not oblige you to.
- Change the method. Ask your contractor whether the job can be done from your own land, from inside the building or with different access equipment, so that nothing crosses the boundary.
- Use the courts as a last resort. The Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 lets a court order access, but only for work that is reasonably necessary to preserve your own land, such as repairs and maintenance of a building, clearing drains and pipes, and cutting back or removing hedges and trees. It is aimed at repair, not improvement, and the court must refuse if the entry would cause unreasonable interference or hardship to your neighbour. The order sets the dates, the hours, the method and any compensation or insurance. It is slower and costs more than agreeing terms, so take legal advice before you apply.
If you are the neighbour
You are entitled to know what is proposed before you agree to anything.
- Ask what, where, for how long and who insures it, and get the answers in writing.
- If the work is covered by the Act, the building owner must give you at least 14 days’ notice of entry, the surveyors set the terms of access in the award, and the building owner must protect your property and compensate you for damage. You cannot refuse entry for work the Act covers where the building owner has followed it, but you can ask for the terms to be fair. If you have received a notice, call us before you reply.
- If the work is not covered, you can refuse. A reasonable request is often worth agreeing to, on written terms that cover hours, insurance and making good any damage. A schedule of condition before the scaffold goes up protects you.
Roofs and scaffolding
Roof jobs are where access disputes most often start. See roofing work and the Act for which roof jobs reach the party wall, and where the scaffold usually has to go.
Our fixed fees
When the work is covered by the Act, the award normally sets out where the scaffold goes and when. We prepare and serve party wall notices for £70, with no VAT, and our other fees are on the fees page. Call us on 0800 999 1947 for a free first conversation, whichever side of the fence you are on.
Questions about access and scaffolding
Can a neighbour refuse scaffolding on their land?
If the work is not covered by the Party Wall etc. Act, yes. You need their consent, a different method or a court order. If the work is covered, you have a right of entry on at least 14 days’ notice, and the award sets the terms.
How much notice must I give before my builders enter?
For work covered by the Act, at least 14 days’ written notice to the owner and the occupier, except in an emergency, when it is as early as is reasonably practicable. For work the Act does not cover there is no right of entry, so it is a matter of agreement.
Can my neighbour charge me for scaffolding access?
The Act does not entitle a neighbour to a fee for access to carry out work it covers. Where there is no right of entry a neighbour can set terms, and some ask for a payment. If a court makes an order under the Access to Neighbouring Land Act 1992 for work to a home, it cannot order a payment for the right of entry itself, but it can require compensation, insurance and the neighbour’s expenses to be covered.
Can I put a scaffold up without asking if my neighbour is away?
No. Without a right of entry or their consent, it can be a trespass whether or not they are at home. For work the Act covers, the 14 days’ notice still has to be given to the owner and occupier.
Does a party wall award deal with scaffolding?
Yes. For work covered by the Act the award normally says where scaffolding may stand on the neighbour’s side, on which days and at what hours, together with protection for their property and a schedule of condition.