East Suffolk Council
Suffolk Coastal launches new noise service
As the weather starts to improve Suffolk Coastal’s Environmental Protection Team is asking its local residents to spare a thought for their neighbours.
Around 40% of the population say that noise affects their quality of life with noise nuisance from pubs, clubs, barking dogs and loud music from neighbours proven to cause stress, loss of sleep and high blood pressure.
The Environmental Protection Team at Suffolk Coastal deals with around 500 complaints of noise nuisance each year, most of which occur during the summer months.
Carol Poulter, Cabinet Member for the Green Environment, said:
"The problem is especially severe in the summer, when open windows and doors make us all more susceptible to noises in the neighbourhood. Many of us live close to our neighbours and we depend on them to be considerate. However, loud parties, barbecues, or simply turning up the stereo in the house so that it can be heard in the garden can all adversely affect others during the summer months as can car stereos and entertainment noise from pubs and clubs."
The majority of our residents do not disturb other people with their noise, but there are a small number who make their neighbours’ lives a misery with inconsiderate behaviour.
This year we are making some changes to our service in response to feedback we’ve received from our residents. Rather than pre-planning visits outside of office hours to investigate noise complaints, we will be providing a more reactive service during the busy Friday and Saturday evenings of the summer months. This improvement should help us provide a better service to our residents with a quicker resolution of the more serious noise complaints that occur outside of our normal office hours.”
From the beginning of May to the end of September, officers from the Council will be available to respond to noise complaints from 8pm to 12 midnight Friday and Saturday nights.
Officers can be contacted through Suffolk Coastal’s weekend evening hotline on: 01502 527132. Noise complaints can also be reported during the normal working day by telephoning: 01502 562111.