A woman has been left gobsmacked after returning home to find that the council had stolen her patio.
Laurie Penny had popped out to the shops for a few hours but when she came back, she saw her back garden tiles were missing.
Yet despite every bit of patio being gone, the garden furniture had been neatly stacked to the side, MyLondon and the Mirror report.
Although many may have assumed that they had been robbed, Laurie realised that scaffolding had been set up to access it.
She noted: "Thieves don’t generally tidy up afterwards. Or stack the furniture so neatly."
So, Laurie decided to take to Twitter to ask Islington Council what had just happened while she was out.
The north London resident wrote: "This is awkward, but yesterday, I had a patio that I quite liked.
"This morning I popped out to the shops for a couple of hours, and now it’s…well, um, it’s gone.
"I know you’re busy, but could you tell me who took my patio, and perhaps also why?"
The council admitted to the patio-nabbing but said it was done to renew their waterproof membrane after a serious property leak.
They noted that Laurie should have been informed that her patio would be removed and apologised.
A spokesperson for Islington Council said: "Islington Council is committed to ensuring that everyone in the borough has a place to live that is safe, secure, and comfortable.
“Due to a serious leak at this resident’s property, it’s been necessary to remove patio tiles at the property and renew the waterproof membrane.
"The resident should have been contacted by the contractor in advance of the work taking place but, regrettably, this did not happen.
“The council has reached out to the resident to apologise, to discuss any concerns, and to reassure her that the patio will be fully reinstated."
Islington Council added that the work to replace Laurie's patio was nearly complete and should be done so by Monday, September 5.
Laurie concluded: "It was a hilarious mess up, but it has a happy ending. By next week I should have a new patio!"
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