Sutton Common Rovers president told to remove garden room after lease breach
Justin Salmon, president of non-league Sutton Common Rovers FC, has been ordered to demolish a garden room he built at his home in Coulsdon after a court ruled it breached his lease. The dispute with neighbour Andrianna Neophytou matters because it followed an earlier tribunal decision and is expected to generate legal bills of more than £100,000.
Salmon first received permission to build a pergola in 2017, then added a shed and gradually developed the structures into a furnished, roofed entertainment room. A judge rejected his argument that the altered room counted as a pergola, but allowed him to keep the adjacent shed; Neophytou was also ordered to remove a porch she had built alongside the house.
In short
- A judge ordered Justin Salmon to demolish his garden room.
- The room developed from a permitted pergola into an entertainment area.
- The neighbour dispute is expected to cost more than £100,000 in legal fees.
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The case for
The ruling can be defended as upholding the lease and the court’s earlier decision: permission for a pergola did not necessarily authorise a furnished, roofed entertainment room, and allowing that change could make lease restrictions harder to enforce. Requiring its removal gives effect to the agreed terms and treats both neighbours’ structures under the same rules, while leaving the adjacent shed in place reflects the judge’s distinction between them.
The case against
The order can be questioned as a severe remedy for a dispute over a structure that developed from a permitted pergola, particularly when the case is expected to bring legal costs exceeding £100,000. A more proportionate approach might have been to allow alterations that brought the room into compliance, rather than require demolition; the reciprocal order for Neophytou to remove her porch also suggests the dispute has imposed substantial costs on both neighbours.
Explained simply
Sutton Common Rovers is a non-league football club, and Justin Salmon is its president. He and his neighbour, Andrianna Neophytou, live in Coulsdon and are involved in a dispute over structures built beside their homes.
Salmon had permission for a pergola, an outdoor garden structure, but later additions turned it into a furnished room with a roof. The case centred on whether this altered structure complied with the terms of his lease, which sets rules for changes to the property.
The dispute has involved earlier tribunal proceedings and is expected to bring legal bills of more than £100,000. The court also considered a porch built by Neophytou, so the case concerns structures on both properties.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Football club president ordered to demolish 24ft ‘eyesore man cave’ in his garden after £100,000 court battle with neighbour”.