Couple win £1,000 payout after claiming footballs kicked into garden of £2m country home caused 'distress'

21 May 2025, 11:47 | Updated: 21 May 2025, 13:16

A couple has won £1,000 in damages after '170 footballs' were kicked into garden of £2m country home.

Mohamed and Marie-Anne Bakhty claimed the sports pitch had 'taken over' their life.

The couple sued the county council in Winchester, Hampshire, after '170 footballs' were allegedly kicked into their garden in less than year.

The High Court was told that St Anns became a "no go area" after a primary school built a football pitch next door.

The court ruled Westgate All Through Primary School's decision to build the pitch and stray balls landing in the garden amounted to a 'public nuisance'.

Mr Bakhty, 77, claimed he was forced to stop using his garden to relax and alleged the school "deliberately" set up the pitch there to "upset" the couple.

Meanwhile, his wife, Ms Bakhty, 66, claimed the "horrendous" and "continuous" noice caused her distress.

Judge Philip Glen said that the "frequent projection" of balls onto someone's private property breached common law.

Upon visiting the Bakhty's home, Mr Glen said he found 20 footballs scattered around the garden flowerbeds.

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Mr Glen said: “There can also in my judgment be no objection to the use by the school of the area presently fenced off behind the all-weather play area for structured activities such as natural history lessons.

“Indeed, if a net was erected to prevent balls, and other objects, from crossing the boundary fence, I cannot necessarily see that there could be any real objection to opening this area up altogether.”

He continued: “I do not consider that the defendant ‘threatens and intends’ to continue the nuisance that I have found existed, albeit that they would have liked in other circumstances to have done so.”