Hi - about 20 minutes after first light this morning we saw a bird of prey sitting on our garden fence. It had a black back/head with some russet at the top of the chest which was mostly cream. It was a smallish and compact. I couldn't see the legs but its eyes were dark. It didn't have a long tail. We live in on the western edge of Sheffield about 200 metres from woodland and a 10-minute walk from arable land.
best guess assuming you definitely know it was a "bird of prey" would be a male sparrowhawk. Maybe as it was dark you jst couldnt make out a long tail or it was hidden? There really arent any other opions to guess at as a common garden bird of prey