THOUSANDS OF NOISY NEIGHBOUR COMPLAINTS IN CITY

COV IS COMPLAINTS HOTSPOT, FIGURES REVEAL

RESIDENTS in Coventry are some of the most likely to complain about their noisy neighbours, according to new data.

Coventry had one of the highest complaint rates in the country when it came to noise in 2018/19, with people making thousands of complaints to their local councils about neighbours, commercial activities, construction, and traffic.

Figures published by Public Health England (PHE) reveal in Coventry, people complained about noise a staggering 4,194 times in 2018/19.

That was a rate of 11 complaints for every 1,000 people, higher the national rate of seven complaints per 1,000 people.

Warwickshire followed locally with five complaints for every 1,000 people, a total of 3,046.

Recent BBC research also suggests households that are in lockdown, due to the coronavirus, could be experiencing even more annoying noise than usual – with councils seeing a rise in complaints.

Earlier this month, the BBC contacted 103 councils across the UK and asked if they had received more noise complaints since the lockdown began in March.

Out of 51 responses from councils, 44 reported a rise.

Across England, there were 382,347 complaints to local authorities about noise in 2018/19, based on statistics collected by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH).

Residential noise accounts for the largest proportion of the gripes.

CIEH recorded 143,054 noise complaints from a survey of 143 local authorities (45% of all local authorities in England). Of those, 69,369 were for residential noise.

That is the case across all regions in England, according to the report, except the South East, where residential rackets

accounted for a smaller proportion of complaints than noise from commercial or leisure premises and construction.

Anne Godfrey, CIEH Chief Executive, said: “These figures remind us that noise continues to be a major issue of complaint made to local authorities across England. “Noise has profound impacts on people’s health, wellbeing and quality of life. Environmental Health Practitioners (EHPS) are on the frontline of resolving noise complaints and deserve recognition for their important contribution to supporting and protecting the nation’s public health.” Health issues associated with noise not only affect individuals’ quality of life, but also generate significant social costs for taxpayers. According to the European Environment Agency, noise pollution has a negative impact on productivity via a combination of distraction, fatigue, and interruption of communication. This loss of productivity amounts to approximately £2 billion a year.

These figures remind us that noise continues to be a major issue of complaint. Anne Godfrey