Couple who housed 150 pigeons in unlawful extension of their suburban backyard are fined £6,000 after neighbours get in a flap
A couple have been fined £6,000 after they housed 150 pigeons in an illegal extension in their suburban garden.
Rifat Begum and Zahid Khan erected the poorly designed, single-storey extension at their home in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, without planning permission and much to the annoyance of their neighbours.
Residents complained about noise from the ‘constant cooing’ and fluttering from the over 100 birds who lived in the extension as well as a foul smell from the birds and the burning of their waste.
Council inspectors described the building as incongruous with the suburban garden setting and was disproportionately large and found it caused significant harm to neighbours and the character of the area.
A planning enforcement notice served by Slough Borough Council ordered the couple to demolish the structures, but this was ignored for several months.
The couple have now been fined £6,000 – to be paid through deductions to their benefits – after pleading guilty to breaching a planning enforcement notice.
In July 2024, a Planning Inspectorate officer found between 100 and 150 pigeons on the couple’s land, as well as evidence of the commercial sale of pigeons and bird food.
The inspector concluded the development caused ‘unacceptable harm’ to neighbouring living conditions and upheld a planning enforcement notice.
Rifat Begum and Zahid Khan erected the poorly designed, single-storey extension at their home in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, without planning permission and much to the annoyance of their neighbours
Residents complained about noise from the ‘constant cooing’ and fluttering from the over 100 birds who lived in the extension (stock image)
However, a council visit in November 2024 confirmed an unauthorised outbuilding remained in place and pigeons were still present on the land.
The pair pleaded guilty to breaching a planning enforcement notice at Berkshire Magistrates’ Court on Monday, December 1, 2025.
District Judge Pankhania outlined a ‘serious and protracted’ breach involving clear, and continued, non-compliance with an enforcement notice.
The defendants were ordered to pay £3,301.25 each, for a total of £6,602.50, which will be recovered through benefit deductions.
Slough Borough Council’s Cllr Paul Kelly said: ‘This case represents a serious and long-standing breach of planning control that caused real harm to neighbours and the wider community.
‘The Planning Inspectorate was clear that the unauthorised structures and intensive pigeon-keeping were harmful, intrusive and unacceptable.
‘Despite every opportunity to comply, the defendants failed to take appropriate action.
‘This successful prosecution demonstrates that enforcement notices are legal requirements, and the council will take firm action when there is planning harm, including harm to residents and the neighbouring amenity, and a statutory notice is not complied with.’
