Tree branch cutter

The people next door to me have planted a copper beech tree right by the boundary fence, and it's going to be enormous (they have no clue about plants) and it is already very tall.
The man that lives there told me last year he was going to find someone to remove the tree but he has now become disabled and can't leave the house,
so he isn't going to do anything about the tree.

This afternoon, after spending hours clearing up the leaves that fell off it last year (they don't rott away) I asked the lady of the house if she'd mind if I cut the branches myself - I can't cope with all those leaves every year, and the dark shade that it throws blocks out most of the sunshine that shines on my garden.

Well she said it was fine, she didn't mind if I cut the branches, so now I will need something to cut them with.
Any ideas as to what I can use ? I have seen photos on line but I don't know which one to choose.

 

Maybe you could hire one? Like this

Long Reach Telescopic Tree Pruner for Hire | Free Delivery | 297 Near You

 

Where I volunteer we use a slightly curved pruning saw on the end of a 4m (when fully extended) pole. It's either Husqvarna or Wolf Garden. It's very effective even on branches that look much thicker than yours. It does look a bit like that one for hire.
You can also get long distance pruners like secateurs that snip where you have a long string on a pulley to activate them.

 

What a pain @Michael Hewett. I think I’d offer to pay half the cost of getting the trees removed. With leaves to collect and remove every year and having shade imposed on the garden, it may be a worthwhile gesture. Trees that have been cut always look unnatural to me, unless they are pollarded or coppiced to encourage new growth.

 

I'd be inclined to ask if they minded if you pollarded them, use the technical term, if yes, chop both stems off at fence height.

 

My neighbours have an Ailanthus that is 40ft at least, I get no sunshine in my garden from 4pm even on the longest day.
I wish I'd asked them if I could cut it back 25yrs ago as they dont actually want it, but its a tree surgeon job now and they wont pay for that.

 

I find the extendible lopper/saw from Lidl works well, and was cheap as chips to buy.

 

Thanks for everyone's help, but after looking at the tree more closely and noticing how thick and numerous the branches are, I agree with some of you and I've decided to get someone to do the job for me. There's a man living just around the corner, about 200 yards away, who does that sort of thing so I'll ask him.

 

It goes against the grain having to pay some one to do something that really isn't your responsibility but better to get it cut down to a manageable height before it becomes a massive job to get sorted or just becomes a blight on your enjoyment of your own garden.

 

Years ago I bought a small electric saw from B&Q for chopping up a blown down fence . It came with two blades, one for wood and one for metal. Works great for chopping off thick branches and of course for other uses.

 

That sounds a handy tool to have @waterbut but the tree is about 20 feet tall and I wouldn't be able to reach all of it. It would be handy to saw through fence posts etc to get them the right height, I might think of getting one

Agree - that's why I'm doing it now, the man living there has become disabled and can't leave the house, and his wife doesn't seem to care about the garden, and she goes to work every day anyway. They've got two zombie sons who never do anything and need a good kick up the arse but that isn't my responsibility.