This appears wired back to front

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So first thing always check when you have work done, many years back got a spark off a site to do away with my central light and fit 4 down lights, now I needed to fit a neutral to my switch so running a 3 & earth from switch to what I thought would be a junction box in the attic and I found this. Now I can eventually trace and make it all good even the unsheathed earth but what worries me is the switched wire with the sleeving it looks like he’s wired it to neutral. I don’t even know what the new blue/brown is for unless he used up his old stock of red/black. Using a light pen type sensor I only get power at this when the lights are off when I switch them on I lose power. Lights have always worked fine 240v gu10 lamps 0FBC481B-ECF3-4535-A8DD-145433348A0A.jpeg6DC79DFB-EDA8-47DF-BDD0-430FC9ECDEB3.jpeg32383A83-B2C8-43FB-A0B1-EFF9A416F1CA.jpeg170845F3-FE14-4AEB-9769-A6131F2CF4E5.jpeg
 
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Jesus wept, what a mess!
Couldn’t believe it and he was either a 4th year or just time served, pity I couldn’t even tell you his name now and if he is still a spark. You can’t see it but to the left he has around 3-4” to another couple of terminal connectors with plenty of slack so don’t know why he didn’t just bring these up to this point, maybe no jb’s with him
 
I’m a plumber/heating engineer and if I had did anything like that I would have been booted of the job, I ask a lot of questions on here so that if I don’t know I find out the correct way to do it
 
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I’m a plumber/heating engineer and if I had did anything like that I would have been booted of the job, I ask a lot of questions on here so that if I don’t know I find out the correct way to do it

Just use the rule of thumb, if it looks a mess, it is a mess. Zero pride in their work.
 
Some of that mess is very old wiring (VIR) and ought to have been replaced with new several decades ago.
 
I think it was rewired around 25- 30 years back, ex council flat that was semi renovated before I bought it. Gave up for today sun has been hitting the roof just above all morning so will wait till tomorrow to start on it. Bar the poor wiring does the switch wire look wrong, I am going to kill the power and join the 2 cables at the switch (which I hope are live/switched live) and test continuance at the mess and hope it’s just the switch wire back to front
 
Yes it's a mess but it all looks to be correctly wired albeit it's not common to have 3 loop outs from one light point. This obviously should be tidied up and all that earth sleeving sorted out.
upload_2021-4-24_12-3-48.png

It looks to me the top cables are the originals, I suspect this botch was done when the 2 cables on the left were added later along with light cable and the brown/blue was a recent addition.

I don't see an earth on the lights cable, this may or may not be needed depending on the fittings used.
 
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Okay so as a non spark why do I get the SL to be live when lights are off and nothing when lights are on
 
Yes it's a mess but it all looks to be correctly wired albeit it's not common to have 4 loop outs from one light point. This obviously should be tidied up and all that earth sleeving sorted out.
View attachment 231382
It looks to me the top cables are the originals, I suspect this botch was done when the 2 cables on the left were added later along with light cable and the brown/blue was a recent addition.

I don't see an earth on the lights cable, this may or may not be needed depending on the fittings used.
Popped a light fitting down and the earth is twisted back round the cable
 

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