Respect your neighbour plea on eve of national Noise Action Week

Summer is coming and the promise of sunny weather means more people will be out of doors. It also means local councils are braced for noise complaints.

South Norfolk Council is next week taking part in national Noise Action Week in an effort to raise awareness of noise and give people advice on how to manage it.

Factsheets are going to all the district's 119 parish councils which set out what constitutes a statutary noise nuisance, what local people can do about it, and the extent of the council's powers to act.

One of the council's bin lorries, which tours the district every day, carries a message on the side, which says simply: "Consider your neighbours - keep the noise down"

Councillor David Bills, Cabinet Member for the Environment, Health and Leisure said:

"We often find that people want to use councils like us to silence anyone they believe is making too much noise.

"We do have powers to investigate and take action, and we use them. But we neither want, nor possess arbitrary and draconian powers to come down hard on anyone and everyone, simply because there has been a complaint.

"The real solution to this thorny issue is for neighbour to respect neighbour. That is one of the reasons why we are trying to raise awareness of the impact that noise can have on others and are asking everyone to be responsible for their actions and consider others in what they do."

Noise from dogs and domestic loud music are the biggest generators of council investigations from year to year. However, there is no definitive list of noises the council can investigate, though it can range from car and home alarms to loud parties and music from car radios and sound systems.

In certain cases, noise can be investigated in connection with the council's crime and disorder team, if it is considered to be anti-social.

The council, however, cannot investigate noise from road traffic, planes and helicopters in flight or normal activities like children playing or vehicles arriving and leaving.

South Norfolk Council will be running a Noise Action Week display at its headquarters in Long Stratton from 18 to 22 May. The factsheets will also be available on the council's website in time for the 18th.

Noise Action Week is organised by Environmental Protection UK.

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