Re: I can get chickens!

From: Mary Fisher (mary.fisher_at_zetnet.co.uk)
Date: 02/24/05 

Date: Thu, 24 Feb 2005 13:16:44 -0000

" Jill." <news@REMOVETHISkintaline.co.uk> wrote in message
news:421dc748$0$45678$ed2619ec@ptn-nntp-reader01.plus.net...
> Mary Fisher wrote:
>> By the way, we're in inner city Leeds. I never thought about applying
>> for permission to keep hens and have never heard of any regulations.
>> The neighbours are happy about it (I don't have a cockerel) and there
>> have been no complaints.
>
> The chances are the deeds to the property prohibit the keeping of "fowls"
> I think this goes back to the enclosure days but I have not had the chance
> to chase this down.

We have our deeds <pride> and there's nothing about that. The property which
was on the land our estate was on had large productive gardens and ,
presumably, at least fowl if not other livestock. Nearby there's a sports
field which was built on what was called, "The Piggeries" when I was a
child, I assume that was a functional description. There are a couple of
(very small) farms nearby too, one which has been there for a very long
time - longer than mine - and a more modern urban farm. This is all in the
same parish as we live.

> The point seemed to be that as "villages" became more structured the
> animals
> were to be kept outwith the emerging settlements and these "rules" became
> part of local bylaws and passed down unaltered as land was transferred.
> I have some notes I dug up about this on the old computor -- it will be
> good
> to get them out one day
> Up until the last few years more councils used to enforce these bylaws --
> maybe as an after affect of the wars when there could well have been too
> many birds in backyards.
> It seems that in the last 5 - 10 years thing have been considerably
> relaxed.
> The way around it [and probably one of the driving forces behind the
> popularity of the bantam breeding] was to have"fancy" fowl -- these were
> not
> considered to be the same as "domestic" fowl -- ie they were more like
> pigeons -- a hobby not for food. :~))

Some people keep pigeons too.

> However its often still a useful legal point if someone keeps birds
> badly --
> the powers that be can use the bylaw along with the nuisance laws to
> remove
> the situation

Oh yes, but nuisance laws would be enough.

I'm confident that there are no bye laws about it round here. I'll look it
up. If there are any, or covenants related to our property, I'll ignore them
until challenged :-)

We also keep our little caravan in our front garden, which IS against the
law. But if anyone from the corpy comes round about it I'll take him/her on
a tour of the area and point out all the others.

If things aren't causing offence there's no problem. If they do give
offence - of any kind - the law is easy to enforce. Believe me, there are
far worse things than hens and caravans round here :-(

Not that that's a good reason for not being responsible.

Mary
>
> --
>
> regards
> Jill Bowis
>
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