Vale of White Horse District Council
Abbey House, Abbey Close,
Abingdon, OX14 3JE
Email: comments@whitehorsedc.gov.uk
Telephone: 01235 520202

Vale of White Horse District Council

How to avoid being a noisy neighbour

Often people are not aware they are causing a noise nuisance until they are told about it. Here are some tips on how to minimise the noise you make and avoid disturbing your neighbours unnecessarily:

• Keep the volume of radios, TVs, and hi-fi equipment as low as reasonably possible particularly at night
• Low frequency noise (i.e. from speakers) can carry further than some sounds, so it is advisable to position speakers off the floor and facing away from party walls. Try using speaker stands or an absorbing rubber mat under the speaker and turn the bass levels down.
• If you like your music on loud use headphones
• Avoid doing noisy DIY activities after about 9pm at night and on Sundays. If neighbours have young children, they will go to bed even earlier, so try to be considerate. If you are going to be doing a lot of drilling or hammering it would be considerate to let your neighbours know beforehand. They may be more understanding if warned in advance.
• If you are going to have a party that will go on until late at night speak to your neighbours and let them know how long it will go on.