About Westminster's noise team

Westminster's noise team operates a 24 hours a day, year round reactive service.

In 2011, we handled 17,673 complaints of which 96.43% were responded to within 45 minutes.1278 noise and statutory nuisance notices were served and 34 prosecution cases were heard in the magistrates courts.

In 2010, we handled 19,066 calls.  98.8% of calls were responded to within 45 minutes. There were 25 noise prosecutions and 768 noise and statutory nuisance notices were served.

The team specialise in:

• noisy neighbours and dogs (including loud music and parties)
• building sites, roadworks and DIY works
• prolonged ringing of burglar and car alarms
• ventilation systems and plant noise
• noisy vehicles, equipment or machinery in the street
• night clubs and licensed premises
• odours and pests
• drainage and waste accumulation

In an emergency we can also deal with:

• Fatal accidents, Legionnaire's disease and other health and safety issues
• Food poisoning incidents and food inspections for emergency closure of premises
• Housing issues, for example drainage problems and emergency rehousing cases

Basic procedure

Once we receive a complaint, we will contact the caller for further details, which may include:

• type of complaint
• how loud/large the problem is
• where it is
• how long/often it has been occurring

If the problem is ongoing, we will arrange to visit. The time arranged will be as soon as possible, following our Visit Prioritisation Guidelines.

If a statutory nuisance is witnessed a formal notice may be served. If the person responsible does not ensure that the nuisance is stopped within the time stated in the notice, we will consider prosecution. This could lead to a fine of up to £5,000 for residential premises and up to £20,000 for commercial premises.

Noise monitoring

The Environmental Science team are able to monitor and analyse noise. They will then produce an internal report within approximately four weeks. This report assists our noise officers deciding the best way to resolve the noise problem and can be used as evidence for prosecutions.

Proactive noise work

Westminster's noise team works closely with entertainment venues in order to assess their impact. We advise them on how much to reduce noise levels by, and use our visits to gain evidence for use by licensing, planning and other departments. Noise surveys are undertaken for cases which centre around planning refusals or licence applications and renewals.

Westminster has mapped the number of residents who are affected by high levels of noise. Where venues are causing a problem, we help set music limiters to control music levels. We also set limits, monitor and report on outdoor concerts and events such as Party in the Park and Notting Hill Carnival.

Further information

• Business plans
• Customer service