To think that No Ball Games should mean...

A "braying" ball boggles the mind!

I am sorry that you have this to contend with on top of all your other challenges in life. I really have no helpful suggestions to make - I wish I had.

It might seem a trivial thing to some, but I do know how uncomfortable it is to be on poor terms with a neighbour and send you a hand hold!

gillybob some people are just so very selfish. Obviously they cannot be bothered to walk to the park or playing fields. It's easier just to "hang" near home.

If they have a "stroppy" mindset the more people complain I guess the more they will keep playing football.

The management company will have to sort this if all the neighbours get onto them.

Maybe “braying the ball” is a Geordie term Lucky I assumed everyone knew what it meant sorry .

You have my sympathy gillybob though I don’t know how to stop it. Just had a brainwave, why don’t you and DH do the same up around their house/cars/windows/gardens. Make sure it’s a heavy old football to do most damage. (Where we used to live next door’s children and friends always played football by our car and garden so I know how you feel).

(I thought “bray was a typo!)

My DH said as much Alima (how would you like it if I kicked the ball against your car ?) which didn’t go down very well at all. My young neighbours (he works away a lot) are fed up with the ball constantly bashing against their back fence , they have a little boy and a baby and she constantly loans to me but she is too timid to challenge them about it .

No Ball Game signs have no legal standing. However what these people are doing is actually an offence under the Highways Act 1980 which the police can enforce:

(3) If a person plays at football or any other game on a highway to the annoyance of a user of the highway he is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding ...

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/66/section/161

A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land so that will include the bays.

It's a level one fine currently £200 max, I believe.

Verbal abuse comes under the Public Order Act 1986 and can carry a fine of £1000.

Good luck with getting the police to act in these pressed times but if you have a management company behind you it's worth seeking legal advice. Maybe a lawyer's letter to the family pointing out the potential fines might steer them towards the park.

Well there you go then Alima

To “bray” something means to hit it /smash it/ kick it/ crash it very hard !

I got brayed a few times by my dad when I was young !

I learn something new every day on gransnett "bray" I like this word!!!

Bloomin’ heck . My young neighbour does not loan to me ! ( I know I’m not well off but I’m not a scrounger) she does moan to me a bit though

I do sympathise with you "Gillybob", why can't people be more considerate!! I would agree with a previous poster that it's worth going back to the management company as they they will have experience of similar situations and may be able to support you further.

Who is in charge of the car park with the allocated spaces? Could you speak to then about it.
If not if there are spaces around the front when they leave could you park your car there.

There is a management company to whom we pay a monthly fee to manage the car park rafichagran . There are a very limited amount of spaces out front it’s almost impossible to get one by the time we get in from work. Anyway the point is we have an allocated bay with our door number on it. Why should one idiot family spoil this for everyone? They are at it as I type, DH is at work so at least his car won’t be getting hit but plenty others are.

Have you got a management committee? Was it them who put up the notices? Where you live sounds similar to our area, where there is a car park behind some of the houses. Our committee deals with any problem like yours. We have an ex- policeman on our committee who comes in useful for problems like that!

Aw yes bray is a word used in yorkshire for hitting a person(id hear it when growing up out playing,kids would say "my brother got home late& dad brayed him" or some such.but its never been used in any other term like for ball playing.we'd say "lakeing out' for that.sympathies over the ball playing though it must drive you all batty.maybe you can all get up a meeting and then all sign a letter or something to go housing management.if they then let the family know theyre prepared to prosecute and/or evict them and point out theres parks etc to play on they might give it up.i beleive they CAN be evicted for such a thing.it may make a difference.

Sorry must have typed at the same time as you gillybob xx

I’m not sure you can evict someone who owns their home Nannan ? We have all had letters warning us that the No Ball Signs were being put up so they would have had one too. One of the signs (the one nearest them) has disappeared (no prizes for guessing who might’ve removed it). I am going to phone the management company again on a Monday as this is getting beyond a joke. I have just counted 11 cars parked out back and three kids and the idiot grandad are having a full blown kick about in between them !

Glad you are familiar with the term “bray” (I assumed everyone had heard of it) must be just a Northern term.

Gilly, sorry I have nothing to add, but feel sorry that your precious weekends and home time, are being spoiled by thoughtless, selfish neighbours.
You need more than a How about a .?

Are the homes rented / owned? If rented then the landlord 'could' write to the culprits and try that route? It would be a long shot..
Selfish people are everywhere unfortunately & in all walks of life.

Sorry you have this real irritation to cope with. But I have some support for all the other residents going out there and playing cricket when only the footballers car is there or you can chalk the wicket on their fence!

Isn’t this the sort of problem that the police community officers would handle?

Would cctv cameras have any effect?

Had a similar problem living 1 minute from the beach! Eventually the kids grew and didn't want play with older generation in street.

Selfish people are everywhere....

They are indeed PECS . Of course they don’t have their car parked where it might get damaged there’s is in pride of place round the front (they seem to have claimed that space as their own as they don’t go out to work) .

Not sure CCTV would make any difference as it would only prove what we all already know. They have ignored the signs and letters (maybe they don’t think they apply to them?) . It’s a lovely day here so I guess this could go on all day again.

I'm with some of the others on here - looks as though you may have to approach the Management - whether it's a Housing Association (or a Management Committee) for some back-up on this one.

Good Luck - I also know what it's like to be pestered by neighbours who are being very selfish in how they use shared/communal space.