Halesowen woman ordered to cover up naked garden gnomes
A woman who claims a council official ordered her to cover up her naked garden gnomes in Halesowen following complaints from a neighbour has spoken of her anger.
Collector Sandra Smith said she was told to put clothes on three of her ornaments because they are deemed offensive.
The 64-year-old preserved their modesty with T-shirts and cowboy hats but later removed the clothing following advice from a police officer.
The grandmother, from Hunnington, said: "I had a telephone call from an officer from Bromsgrove District Council who said could I please cover them up because they were offensive to my neighbour.
"I am more than annoyed. I have been here for 40 years and never had any complaints. I did cover them up with T-shirts and cowboy hats and a police officer who came to investigate something nearby said to take them off because they are not offensive. They are sold in garden centres."
A spokesman for Bromsgrove District Council said the authority had no record of any "gnome-related incidents".
He said: "Council guidelines are statutory, not statuary, and do not explicitly grant authority over garden furniture of this kind. Resolving an issue of this kind would not be a matter for Bromsgrove District Council.
"When we checked none of our service departments had a record of any gnome-related incidents in the Hunnington area and none of our staff recall receiving such a memorable query."
