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_ Welcome to Britain's strictest estate: How neighbours have to follow a 32-page handbook of rules which bans hanging up washing on a Sunday and demands gates are painted black to maintain its 'charm'

_ Welcome to Britain's strictest estate: How neighbours have to follow a 32-page handbook of rules which bans hanging up washing on a Sunday and demands gates are painted black to maintain its 'charm'

Neighbours on Britain's strictest estate have to follow a 32-page handbook of rules which bans people from hanging their laundry on a Sunday.

The neighbourhood, in Birmingham's leafy Calthorpe Estate, has been dubbed the 'strictest' in the country.

Anyone living there is expected to follow a rule book of dos and don'ts - including a strict ban on 'artificial grass' and guidelines about keeping the bins out of view.

Residents must also pay an annual maintenance charge to live on the estate, which stretches through Edgbaston and into Harborne and Quinton.

Do YOU live on the estate? Email alesia.fiddler@mailonline.co.uk 

Howard Scriben, 50, has lived on Calthorpe Estate for six years and says he thinks it's 'strange' that they have to pay an annual fee.

He said: 'It's strange to buy a freehold house - which you spend a lot of money on - and then you still have to pay them each year.

'You have no choice about it, either. I remember getting fined for not paying it once.

'But I'm not sure what we're paying for.

'It obviously appears to be about maintenance - but we're all already paying council tax.

'It seems to me like they're just pocketing a bunch of money.'

The 50-year-old runs a maintenance company and said he didn't know about the rules before he moved in.

'No one exactly comes out and says it,' he said.

'You just start getting bills. It's sort of known in the area - but no one actually tells you.

'One bill I got hit with was when I wanted to do an extension.

'I obviously got planning permission via the council like everyone does, but here, you have to make an application to Calthorpe too. That costs £300.'

As for the rules, he says he doesn't take too much notice of them.

'I can't say I've read the handbook, so I don't follow all that stuff too much,' he said.

'I know other estates have rules - on one nearby residents have to keep their doors green - but those don't charge a fee, so that's more my issue.

'I'd actually say they don't enforce them too much as there have been properties recently with skips out front, and rubbish left there for months.

'So again, I don't know where my money is going.'

Principle Estate Management, which runs Calthorpe, claims the dos and don'ts help the estate maintain its 'charm'.

A statement at the beginning of its Residents' Handbook reads: 'At Calthorpe Estates we have always invested in maintaining the integrity and period charm of the Estate, to provide a quality environment where people want to live.

'We have produced a Residents' Handbook which provides an explanation of the Calthorpe Estate Scheme of Management, and guidance on maintaining or extending your property.

'The Scheme of Management was originally introduced under Section 19 of the Leasehold Reform Act 1967, to ensure that the original character of individual properties and the uniqueness of residential developments are retained within properties comprising the original Estate.

'Under the Scheme it places obligations on freehold property owners to ensure they adhere to a number of requirements.

'We hope you will find it useful and support us in upholding the standards of the Estate for the benefit of current and future generations.'

MailOnline has contacted Principle Estate Management for comment. 

Do YOU live on the estate? Email alesia.fiddler@mailonline.co.uk 

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