To think that No Ball Games should mean...

They are hitting other peoples cars with the ball. Surely the police should be involved. Ring the police when its happening.

You could write to the Council who will send you diary logs and write them a letter. You could also speak to the community police.
I can only sympathise. I have a neighbour whose solution to the Council writing to her to tell her to stop buzzing our intercoms all the time was to throw rocks at our windows instead. I think that the police and councils were getting a bit better at dealing with difficult neighbours before all the cuts kick in but it is not high priority.
Some ASB Officers are better than others and you might as well give it a go. It must work for some people.
I presume the management company has been informed that the ball playing has not stopped. It might be worth looking at their contract to see if you can threaten to replace them if they don't deal with it more effectively. If your property is leasehold, they will have the same lease and you should look at that to see what the good behaviour terms are which are usually set out in a schedule at the end of the document.
The more all the neighbours can work together the better. If you are sent diary logs by the Council, make sure that all your neighbours have them and are filling them in. Send them in after about a month as Councils don't usually ask for them to be returned and they do use them as a way of fobbing people off. I doubt the Council will be prepared to take them to court for ball playing given some of the problems they have to deal with but they should write to them and it is surprising how often people do respond to formal written warnings.
Nothing is easy about dealing with nuisance neighbours. I have had more than my fair share. Bear in mind that a problem with your neighbours is something that you have to disclose if you sell. These problems do often resolve themselves with people moving, teenagers moving away etc.

Gillybob.The management company are the ones to deal with it and you must persevere so send a letter of complaint, keeping a copy of it is essential, adding the registration numbers of the cars belonging to the ones who are playing ball games. It would help if you get backup ie signatures, added to your letter from those who are also witnessing this deliberate ignoring of the rules concerning the ball games.

Our home beat officer would have a word but sadly far too far away! It’s good that the children and their grandfather are out playing football but it sounds as though this adult in particular is being a HUGE and thoughtless bully to neighbours. Certainly not teaching his grandchildren and their friends any respect for other people.

Hope it works out. ?

After years of having lovely neighbours all round me here, I now have louts like these either side. I really sympathise with your situation because they are ruining your enjoyment of your home.

There is no reasoning with people who are adult bullies, especially if you live alone. I would be inclined to take the advice on here to see what could be done legally. A word from someone in authority who is experienced at handling this kind of lout might help you. I do hope so.

I know when my son owned a flat which he played maintenance fees on, the management company sent out circular notices reminding people about unacceptable practices. So I think you should ring or write to the management company. If you write or email you could ask fellow sufferers if you can put their names to it. Strength in numbers. Some management companies are better than others.

We have the same problem in our cul de sac,it is T shaped and we are on the corner, at the side of the house which is next to our back garden French is parking bays. There are no ball games signs around and on our tenancy it says no ball games but all the time you have kids hoofing a ball around,adults too, they hit the cars,go all over the front gardens breaking anything that is planted and the door is always going,the ball has gone over the fence into my back garden and they want it back,no please or thank you mind. It’s ok if my daughters home to get it back I can’t get into the garden as I can’t get down the step so I stay with the curtains closed now and upstairs hoping they don’t knock as get nasty if I say they will have to wait. They also kick the ball on the wall which is our sitting room and the thump,thump,thump drives me mad so I really sympathise with the OP

Oh dear Gillybob, unfortunately there is no reasoning with bullying perverse people,usually makes their behaviour worse. The management company has to be involved and take this seriously. I would e-mail them and get as many other people affected by this situation to do the same. Inform the management company that you have also e-mailed your local MP including a copy of your request. Ask for a written reply as to how the management company is actually intending ' managing' the situation
I wish you luck getting this resolved, it's awful.
I had to laugh at the 'bray' the ball bit, as a Geordie myself it reminded me of an uncle who had lads play football using the gable end of his house to mark the goal posts on. Can't repeat exactly what he said but -bray came into it. A lot.

This story reminds me of something that happened when my children were young. We had two brats living next door, who could do no wrong in their parents’ eyes. They used to deliberately boot their football into our elderly car when it was parked on our driveway, luckily doing it no damage.
One day they did it when my young son was there. He angrily picked up the ball and slung it at their posh car next door.
Of course, Sod’s Law, he broke the wing mirror. They came storming around to complain. Of course they denied that their precious boys would deliberately aim at our car.
In the interest of neighbourly peace we paid for the damage, which we could ill-afford. They must have had a word with their innocent cherubs, though, because the targeting ceased after that.

First of all I'd make sure to get a parking space at the front of the house and encourage any like minded neighbour to do the same. Perhaps if your 'awkward' neighbours have their cars at the back they will appreciate the problem. I should also re-contact the management team and also give a call to the police although they probably won't have the time do anything.

I wonder if you sent a letter to the management company on behalf of, and signed by, all of the people who are being troubled by this inconsiderate family, the company would take action.

I do have some sympathy with children who have no access to outside space for play but in your case gillybob where there are plenty of nearby areas in which they can play, I think this is totally unacceptable.

We had that problem used to play outside our kitchen window, asked the parents to tell the boys not to play there but they ignored us, asked our local council if they would put up a no ball sign, they did but said it wouldn’t make any difference. It didn’t sonwe sold and moved away some families are so ignorant.

This is an offence under The Highways Act, try the police.

We used to have teens kicking a football in the road outside our house. My husband started leaving his car on the road instead of the driveway. It meant there was no room to kick a ball. We were tired of the ball hitting our house.

I think it very much depends on what kind of housing you are in whether you can do anything about this problem or not.

If you have a home owners' association you might be able to take the matter up there, as you are obviously not the only family annoyed by these inconsiderate neighbours.

If you are in rented property, you need to try to get your landlord to act.

I would be very disinclined to giving tit for tat, that only increases bad feeling in these kinds of cases. We were bothered by other residents in our block of flats moving or damaging DH's bicycle even although he always left it in a bike stand and hadn't offended any of the neigbours that we knew of. Moving others bikes only made matters worse, so please don't retaliate even though the temptation to do so must be very strong.

We had a similar problem with a swing park and grassed area including an “aesthetic mound” created opposite our house. Then Yobs started taking over, destroying the equipment and intimidating other users. Our complaints got nowhere initially until a very strong willed Eastern European lady took us in hand. She told us to keep a detailed log then send it with a short and precise accompanying letter to anyone with the slightest connection, copying them all in so they are aware that others know of their action or lack of action. Local police, senior police, mayor, individual council committees such as leisure services, MPs, PM and ministers, council departments, local newspapers, Uncle Tom Cobley and all! Encourage others to write individual letters as some authorities act only when a certain number of complaints are received. Once a newly appointed police inspector started phoning around (having rescued our correspondence from a bin) and suddenly all the others jumped on board as well. Took a few meetings but eventually higher railings were installed, prickly bushes planted all along the edges, the beat bobby included it on his rounds and the gates were locked every evening and finally peace was restored! The more people you involve the better chance that at least one of them will decide to help out and start the ball rolling. Of course you could just put your property on the market and move on!

I agree with grandtante, it is not a good plan to retaliate, much as you might like to, as this will often escalate unpleasantness and could become frightening for you. People who behave in this selfish and inconsiderate way no doubt have experience in being disruptive nuisances and will probably not have much restraint. There is a lot of good advice here and I would certainly go for the management company as they could take measures; also keep on at the police about the highway offences.

We had a similar problem with our courtyard in the summer. Every time we heard them kicking the ball around, we went out to 'wash' the car or clean the windscreen, parking it in the middle of our bit of the space. I even took a garden chair and a cup of tea out there one day and sat reading a book. The kids soon stopped!

Environmental Health are the department to sort it out for you. Don't wait for them to send a diary. You can ask for one but log all previous dates/times/actions as well, when it arrives and continue for a couple or three weeks. It might help to get a doctor's note if it's affecting your health. Another GNer mentions drawing her curtains and retreating upstairs when the incessant ball kicking starts against her sitting room wall. That is totally unacceptable and she needs to contact her local EH dept ASAP.
They will should act regardless of whether property is private or rented.
Management companies are often useless unless you're behind with fees.

These brats children are probably the same little darlings who run around pubs, supermarkets and other public places, ignored by their parents. What can you expect if their parents and even grandparents were never taught any manners or to consider other people?

Have you spoken to your local councillor and MP?

Management company where I live. All the properties have attached to their Deeds a Conditions document. Included in Conditions No Ball Games on a specific piece of land. Kids/teenagers were using for same annoying residents with balls in gardens, noise, hitting cars, running through and damaging planting. Management company contacted to stop this nuisance. Co. decided to have residents vote on whether ball games should be allowed. Majority a big "for". Obviously those voted For were not affected by any of the problems. Management Co had to cancel outcome once it was pointed out that the Conditions are in fact legal with an Act covering the legality. You may well have the same sort of cover. Also what Delibes says. Get management company involved.

What about the parents of the boys? Are the boys visiting?

I know exactly what you mean gilly about braying the ball off the wall, braying is infinitely more irritating than just stotting it off the wall.
I liked it in the old days when we had a beat bobby and he used to grab hold of the offenders ear and march him home, mother used to give them a smack or a good telling off for bringing the 'polis' to the door.

I wonder if anyone can give me some advice/support. My daughter has had 4 rounds of IVF with one pregnancy that ended in miscarriage. Before this she had 2 ectopic pregnancies. I am supporting her emotionally and financially but i feel devastated and panicky. I don't know anyone who has watched their daughter going through this horrendous process and have no one for support. I know its not about me but i am struggling. Does anyone here know of any resources or a forum for gran wannabees who feel so broken?