![\"John](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1_John-McKenzie-from-Wavertreehas-been-told-to-remove-his-pigeon-loft-from-his-back-gardenPic-Andre..jpeg\")
<\/p>\nJohn McKenzie has kept pigeons for more than 40 years, describing it as a ‘vital working class sport’ and his life’s passion<\/p>\n
John McKenzie in front of his pigeon loft(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n
A man from Wavertree said he was sat in a Tesco<\/a> car park when he received a phone call saying he could be fined \u00a320,000, all because of a complaint made about his ‘life’s passion’. John McKenzie, 54, has kept pigeons for more than 40 years, and decided to build a pigeon loft in his back garden, at significant financial cost, so he could carry on enjoying a ‘vital working class sport’<\/p>\n Despite getting written approval for the pigeon loft from Torus housing<\/a> association, it is now subject to enquiries from Liverpool City Council’s planning enforcement team<\/a>, which means John could be forced to dismantle the loft, and even be fined \u00a320,000, he said.<\/p>\n John added: “I’ve had pigeons all my life<\/a>, and because I’m diagnosed with autism and combined ADHD, the pigeons help with my struggles in life on a daily basis. Keeping pigeons is my life’s passion.”<\/p>\n John points to the storied history of pigeons in British culture, including the importance of their role in the First and Second World Wars, when they were used to transport urgent intelligence to the frontlines.<\/p>\n He said: “It is a dying working class sport, but there’s still over 40 racing pigeon clubs just in the North West, with 3,500 affiliated members.<\/p>\n “I’m also a fully-fledged, paid-up member of the Royal Pigeon Racing Association (RPRA), of which the Queen Mother was the patron, so I’m fully aware of the regulations around this.”<\/p>\n John said he was made aware of a complaint about his pigeon loft at some point late last year, and immediately contacted Torus to explain what is was, the scale, the dimensions, as well as the importance to him personally.<\/p>\n As a result, a Torus representative visited the property for an assessment, before granting written approval for the pigeon loft, in a letter dated October 7, 2025, and seen by the Liverpool ECHO<\/a>.<\/p>\n Describing the process, John said: “As soon as [the housing officer] came out and looked at my pigeon loft, they said, “it’s absolutely beautiful”, and they granted me permission straight away.<\/p>\n John McKenzie in his pigeon loft(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)<\/p>\n “But [last week, June 16), I’m sitting in Tesco car park, and I get a phone call telling me Liverpool City Council\u2019s planning enforcement have received a complaint and I\u2019ve got seven days to dismantle the loft or I\u2019m going to be fined \u00a320,000.<\/p>\n “I told them, I’m not dismantling nothing, because Torus, have already granted me permission, and now 10 months later I\u2019m being told it’s got to go, because of a complaint?”<\/p>\n![\"John](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0_John-McKenzie-from-Wavertreehas-been-told-to-remove-his-pigeon-loft-from-his-back-gardenPic-Andre..jpeg\")
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