14 hours ago
Neighbours at war after mother who parked double-decker bus on her driveway to renovate it was hit by 'ASBO' after snobby complaints
A mother who parked a double decker bus on her driveway has been ordered to remove it after 'snobby' neighbours complained it was spoiling their view.
Wendy Salmon was criticised by locals when she left the vehicle at the end of the leafy cul-de-sac street in Surrey on a temporary basis with hopes of renovating it.
It sparked a row with families on the street, who reported her to the council.
The 55-year-old, who runs a pub, has accused the neigbours of being 'curtain twitchers' after the council accepted she was 'not breaking any laws'.
Following a two-year-battle, the mother-of-two must now remove her vehicle by June 20.
Ms Salmon argued her neighbours were 'treating [her] like a criminal' and going behind her back.
She said: 'The wording of the CPN was that it was "upsetting the ambience of the local area". Now no-one speaks to me. All my neighbours completely ignore me.
'I'm being treated like a criminal even though I've never committed a crime in my life.
'The whole thing is just ridiculous. The council said it needed a certain amount of witnesses so a neighbour went knocking on doors to try and drum up the hatred against me. She went straight on the attack.
'All her friends up the road can not even see the bus from their home. There is no way it is impacting or bothering them. It is just snobbery pure and simple.'
Ms Salmon's street in Camberley is lined with four-bedroom detached properties with an average house price of around £600k.
Her house is at the end of the cul-de-sac, and she has said her drive is out of the view of most of the residents complaining.
Ms Salmon added: 'I keep myself to myself but this was going to be a business for me and my children. I am still hoping to do it but it's going to be a lot more costly and difficult.
'This was started by just one neighbour who did not like look of something. I had to tell her she does not own my house - she does not own the street. You can not even see it until you get to the end of the drive.'
Problems began in March 2023 when Ms Salmon bought the Dennis double-decker bus for £6k from a friend's brother and parked it in her private driveway to renovate it.
She explained: 'My plan was to convert the bus into a bar/cafe, offering private parties and events.
'I wanted this to be an investment for my children, giving them an opportunity to work for themselves as they both have a passion for food.
'Within 15 minutes of if being parked the man next door appeared to ask if it was a permanent fixture.
'Within another hour he returned to say that there will be complaints. Over the next few days his wife spoke to me and asked various questions. I told her that I was renovating the bus and that I hoped it would be completed in three months.'
The bus was then reported as 'abandoned', which resulted in a visit from a member of Surrey Heath Borough Council's Corporate Enforcement Department.
The council initially confirmed via email there are no planning restrictions, and no further action would be taken.
But two weeks later, officers contacted Ms Salmon to say a further complaint had been received.
She said: 'This was from a different neighbour. This neighbour cannot see the bus from their position on the road but is a friend of the initial complainer.
'I later received another visit from the council and I showed them the inside of the bus, clearly work had been carried out. Apparently, my neighbour had told them that she didn't want to see my bus while she was sitting watching TV in the summer.'
Ms Salmon received an email from the council advising her to SORN (declare it will be kept off the road) the vehicle and complete the renovation as soon as possible.
She added: 'Yet a few months later I received a Community Protection Warning (CPW) from the council. It said that if I can't comply with the order I could get a fixed penalty notice, be prosecuted, or the bus could be destroyed or disposed of.
'The warning had an impossible timescale, making it extremely challenging to get the bus ready for an MOT to make it legal to drive.
'A few months after this, the CPN arrived. I had no choice but to appeal.'
Ms Salmon said limited funds meant she had to represent herself in court, and she reluctantly dropped the appeal after getting the wording of the CPN changed.
She added: 'The council team was saying that after eight months the bus was still on my drive, and it needed to be moved.
'They couldn't comprehend that their actions had caused the delay.
'I reminded them that the CPN meant the bus would not be allowed to park in a residential area in Surrey Heath, and I explained how this would affect my business plan.
'The bottom line was if I didn't agree to move the bus then I would have to go into court and be cross examined.
'I didn't want my personal life played out in court, knowing that I would be the victim yet again of local gossip.
'I agreed to move the bus, if they agreed to change the wording on parking in a residential area.
'We went in front of the judge, I explained that the only reason I was dropping the appeal was because it was making me ill, with my family including my 79-year-old father having been bullied by my neighbours.
'I don't know what the future holds, but I do not like my previously loved home, I don't want to leave the house as I feel bullied, neighbours no longer speak to me or my partner.
'I have had over a year of sleepless nights, stress and anxiety. My dream of restoring the bus is no longer something that I want to do.
'It is the council and my neighbour who have upset the ambiance in the local area, not me.'
Ms Salmon says in addition to the £6k to buy the bus she has spent around £2k on 'recycled' materials to restore it.
'It's getting so close to the deadline I think I will put it at the pub car park for now,' she added.
'This neighbour was the only one who had an issue with it. The council inspected initially and said they had no issue.
'But she wouldn't let it rest. The neighbour is just so stuck up and doesn't like the way it looked and only cared what people might think.
'But is it the end of a cul de sac and I have to drive in front of her house to get on the drive. You can not see the bus and it is really tucked away.
'She just didn't like the way it looked and instigated complaints.'
The neighbour who launched the complaint was unavailable to comment.
