We at Brent Council love The Noise App. It’s like a tireless officer who can work 24/7 all year round in every home in our borough where neighbour noise nuisance is an issue. It’s an indispensable triage tool, enabling us to identify cases that warrant further investigation or enforcement intervention and advising users accordingly for those reports that don’t meet our qualifying criteria. Being able to share reports and recordings with housing providers also means we can ensure landlords meet their tenancy management responsibilities.

Here’s just one of many examples of its successful use:

A Brent Council tenant, subject to a noise abatement notice prohibiting loud music, repeatedly chose to ignore the legal warning. Witnessing a breach of the notice in person proved difficult because there was an officer safety note on the case cautioning against such action due to the tenant’s suspected involvement with drugs and firearms. Also,  during summer months, the noisemaker and his cohorts were often outside the property’s front door, making safe investigation challenging. Consequently, very many reports and recordings of loud music were collected using The Noise App. After issuing the tenant a £100 fixed penalty notice (under the London Local Authorities Act 2004) and a reminder – which went unpaid – a prosecution file was submitted to the borough solicitor, who was willing to prosecute solely on evidence provided by the app’s recordings, to demonstrate a breach of the noise abatement notice. On the day of the hearing, we were prepared to play recordings to the bench, either through noise-cancelling headphones or using a mobile loudspeaker. The tenant failed to attend, and subsequently, the matter was proved in his absence. He did, however, complete a plea form and entered a guilty plea, advising in mitigation that his brother was ‘training to be a DJ’. The magistrates did not call us to the courtroom; they were satisfied with the reports gathered via The Noise App.

Strategically and operationally, The Noise App has had a significant positive impact on our noise nuisance service provision.

With thanks to Martin Wood, Principal Nuisance Control Officer for Community Safety and Prevention Partnerships, Housing and Resident Services at Brent Council.