Nila Patel say she used to enjoy the view of green space around her home in Ilford, but after three years of construction there are now 33 flats with windows peering directly into her home
A woman who purchased her home 25 years ago is furious after strangers can now peer into her bedroom after three-storey flats were built a metre away.
Nila Patel say she used to enjoy the view of green space around her home, but after three years of construction, the homes now stand at the end of her garden, with windows peering directly into her home in Ilford.
Redbridge Council justified the approval of these homes for “families who desperately need a roof over their heads”. However, the 46-year-old admin worker argues that the 33 flats make her “feel constantly surrounded” and strangers “can see into my bedroom if the curtains are open”.
While there were always flats on either side of her home, her garden was surrounded by open, green space. Now, she estimates there’s only one metre between her garden and the back flats, and no more than three metres at her garden’s side. She added that the once green space to her garden’s right is being replaced by a car park serving the flats.
Nila said: “This has caused nothing but headache. It’s absolutely disgusting to take away someone’s privacy. They can see into my bedroom if the curtains are open. My home and garden used to feel like my quiet safe place but that has been ruined now. I don’t feel comfortable any more. It’s so sad to have my home ruined like this. I feel constantly surrounded. It just doesn’t feel fair. There isn’t enough distance between the flats and my garden.
“I can be seen in every part of my garden so I don’t want to go out there anymore. I don’t even want to hang my washing out there now. They can see into my bedroom if the curtains are open. We had flats on either side before but they didn’t overlook our garden and there was a lot more space. The new flats are right in your face. I can even see right into them from my bedroom window.”
She works from home and said the building work, which was completed in August and began in summer of 2021, made it hard to focus and have meetings with the loud noise.
She told My London: “This has been awful and extremely draining. The constant noise and dust has caused me years of anxiety and stress. I’ve lost all my privacy and feel bombarded. Our view now is just flats, and on the right there’ll be a car park.” Nila first contacted Redbridge Council with a noise complaint a month after the work began, but said they concluded it wasn’t too loud. She’s kept emailing them and also her MP.
A Redbridge Council spokesperson said: “We’re providing these homes to local families who desperately need a roof over their heads. The housing crisis in Redbridge is reaching a critical point, with over 8,000 people on our council house waiting list. That’s why we’re building 600 new council houses for local families and people in most need. Planning permission was granted in February 2021 for this housing development, and all aspects and objections would have been thoroughly considered. If anyone has concerns about constructing these much-needed homes, we would be pleased to meet them. We are committed to working with our neighbours to resolve any issues.”
