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It is the responsibility of an owner or occupier of private land or property to ensure that frontage hedges, or other vegetation, do not overhang or protrude onto the highway or footpath and restrict passage of pedestrians or vehicles.
Hedges should be cut back to the boundary, or vertically above the rear of a footpath to a height of 2.2m.
Many countryside hedgerows are protected by the Hedgerow Regulations 1997. The Hedgerow Regulations were introduced to help address the widespread loss of countryside hedgerows that had occurred due to intensification of farming methods. The regulations introduced new arrangements for local planning authorities in England and Wales to protect important hedgerows in the countryside, by controlling their removal through a system of notification. It is unlawful to remove or destroy certain hedgerows without the written permission of your local planning authority.
Important hedgerows are those that:
Hedgerows on or adjacent to the following:
The regulations do not apply to garden hedges (which are defined as hedgerows within or marking the boundary of the curtilage of a dwelling house).
Any landowner who wishes to remove a hedgerow must serve a Hedgerow Removal Notice in writing. We then have 42 days to determine whether or not the hedge is considered 'important' under the regulations, and if so, whether or not to issue a retention notice, even if the hedgerow counts as important.
Apply and make payment online to get permission to remove a hedge.
Alternatively, you can download and print our paper version of the application.
Find out more about making a high hedge complaint.
For general advice, contact us and see: