[Redgoat]

We have set aside about 6m x 4m of our garden for some chickens.

Can anyone suggest the best breed for a garden that won't annoy the neighbours and will provide a healthy supply of eggs?

[compostqueen]

Brown hybrids = lots of eggs 

[Pretty Chick]

My black rock hens are both amazing layers and quiet hens. They lay very big, brown eggs EVERY day (sometimes even double yolkers!!!).

[joyfull]

Sadly though Pretty Chick double yolkers and extra large eggs are not good for the hen.

If I was you Redgoat I would take a look around and decide which you like the look off. Do you want a hen that will lay like mad for a couple possibly 3 years then slow down to just the odd egg (then you have to decide what you will do with her) - in which case get a hybrid bred for laying.
Or do you want a hen that will lay approx 4 eggs a week over a longer period of time (5 or 6 years or even more) then choose a pure breed (of which there are so many very different pretty birds).
All hens in their lifetime will lay about the same amount of eggs but some don't treat it like a sprint more of a country stroll 

[carolbriar]

Hi Redgoat, I have 5 pure breeds and they are all friendly.  Mine have only been laying for coming up to 3 months now - they didn;t start laying until they were 30 weeks but they now pretty much lay every day.  Occasionally they skip one day but carry on the next.  I was interested in hearing Joyfull say they might only lay 4 eggs a week but that wouldn't worry me as there are only 2 of us but I do enjoy giving eggs to friends I say 5 hens but actually one of them hasn't laid anything yet   She is either a late starter or sterile.  I half expected her to start crowing but if she was going to turn out to be a cockerel she would probably have shown the signs by now.
In terms of neighbour friendly when mine first started laying they made quite a noise - something I hadn't really expected but now there they are pretty quiet.  I only have one who insists on telling us she wants to lay and then lays about an hour later and then tells us she has laid her egg.  She is probably my favourite hen but every so often I tell her if she doesn't stop waking us at 6.30 she will be for the pot - only joking - couldn't do that

[joyfull]

One that I was sold as a hen went through a growth spurt then started to crow and tread her sisters at 9 months old - turned out that she was a boy afterall 

[Pretty Chick]

Sadly though Pretty Chick double yolkers and extra large eggs are not good for the hen.

Oh yes, you are right joyfull. When I posted a topic about my hens' double yolkers, I got replies saying that it's fairly common in the first few months of lay, but can be a problem if they continue to lay big eggs when they are older.
I think they are slowing down a bit now though, after a few months of laying double yolkers, we are not getting SO many as before, which is hopefully a good sign