I live in a council house – listen to the noise-hell neighbour I live with whose blaring TV makes my flat SHAKE

A MONTH into surviving successful her assembly level Sarah Chipperfield is readying a relaxing evening of meal and reading.

She loves her caller location but the infinitesimal she's settled connected the sofa her tranquillity is shattered by the blaring sound of her neighbour’s television.

It's truthful large she tin adjacent perceive what amusement they're watching and wrong minutes the sound is truthful overwhelming her caput is thumping, and she can't deliberation properly. 

Dismissing it arsenic a 1 off, Sarah had nary thought that she would inactive beryllium surviving successful ‘noise hell’ 3 years connected and it has go specified an issue, she has to permission her level for bid and quiet.

Having friends implicit is intolerable excessively and immoderate person stopped visiting.

“I thought my assembly level would beryllium a sanctuary. Instead, I person a noisy neighbour from hell. It’s made maine physically and mentally sick,” Sarah tells Fabulous.

“I thought the noisy TV would beryllium a 1 off. It wasn't. 

“I person had to permission my level and locomotion the streets. The sound has been truthful bad.

“The downstairs neighbour's TV is truthful large it causes vibrations successful the floor. I cannot sleep, deliberation oregon relax. 

“I cognize I americium not alone. It is clip councils cracked down connected noisy neighbours.”

Single Sarah lives connected the 2nd level successful a artifact of 24 housing relation apartments for the implicit fifties successful Cirencester, Gloucester.

The erstwhile superior schoolhouse teacher who lives with analyzable PTSD pursuing workplace bullying and puerility trauma is presently connected Universal Credit and pays £670 a period for her one-bedroom flat.

“This Christmas marks the 3rd day of moving into the assembly flat,” she says.

“It should beryllium a clip of festive amusive and joy. Instead I americium forced to deterioration receptor plugs astir evenings and I americium hardly sleeping.

“I can’t person friends implicit for Christmas parties. The sound from downstairs overwhelms them and they conscionable leave.

“Anyone who has had a noisy neighbour knows it is hellhole connected earth. It’s unrelenting.”  

Sarah is not unsocial successful her noisy neighbour battle.

A Good Move survey revealed two-thirds (64 per cent) of radical person had arguments with their neighbours, with sound being their biggest bugbear, including music, large parties, and noisy children.

While a flagship 2021 survey for the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) showed sound is the azygous largest contented of complaints made to section authorities successful the UK.

The World Health Organisation says sound is simply a illness load that is 2nd successful magnitude lone to that from aerial pollution. 

Sarah has ever been a backstage renter but successful 2021 she was served with a Section 21 eviction notice.

The instrumentality - known arsenic a no-fault evictiton - means a landlord tin inquire you to determination retired with 2 months notice, without needing a peculiar reason.

“It was during the 3rd Covid lockdown,” she recalls. 

“No 1 was renting privately. I had to determination into impermanent backstage lodgings. Then I was stateless and sleeping rough.

“I had to beg and plead with Cotswolds District Council for help. I was overjoyed erstwhile they offered maine a country flat. 

“It was a caller commencement for me.”

However, wrong 4 weeks of getting her level successful Decemver 2021, Sarah's neighbour's TV was blaring astir nights from 6pm, sometimes until 3am.

Sarah says she knocked connected her neighbour’s doorway and politely asked if she could crook the measurement down but they denied being the ones responsible.

“They told me it wasn’t their TV but it happened nighttime aft night,” she says.

"I proceed to inquire the neighbour politely to crook down the TV. One nighttime she and her fellow some told maine to f*** off."

Just a fewer months aft moving successful and astatine her wits extremity Sarah went to the section authorization and was enactment successful interaction with a assembly ‘neighbourhood coach’ for advice.

Their occupation is to assistance assembly tenants settee successful to their homes and grip immoderate disputes.

“I person followed the coach’s advice,” Sarah insists.

“I  americium ever polite to my neighbour and my manager said they would talk to them but it hasn’t helped.

“I called the police, but they said arsenic I was lodging relation spot they needed to trust connected their guidance.”

Sarah, who is single, who has a teaching and forensic degree, began keeping a diary of the noise.

She recorded audio and video files connected her telephone to amusement the section authorization lodging squad what she was being enactment through.

Now, she is inactive trying to tackle the ongoing problem.

“I proceed to inquire the neighbour politely to crook down the TV but the effect has sometimes been aggressive,” she says.

“I person feared for my safety. I ne'er thought it would inactive beryllium a occupation 3 years on.”

Sarah knows galore different lodging relation tenants who accidental their complaints astir noisy neighbours autumn connected ‘deaf ears’ astatine the section authority.

“Even erstwhile I played them the tapes and showed them the video, they seemed reluctant to act,” she says.

“Other tenants successful different buildings accidental they person been driven brainsick by their ain noisy neighbours.

“I was told to effort and conscionable grip it.”

Sarah says she is connected the location swap assembly database and would determination retired if she could find different assembly flat.

She adds: “I americium being tally retired of my level due to the fact that of noisy neighbours.

“There are nary flats up for swap. The assembly thinks I americium a serial complainer. My intelligence and carnal wellness is astatine breaking point. I cognize I americium not the lone one.”

Sarah believes councils astir the state enactment noisy assembly houses oregon societal lodging tenants into the ‘too hard basket.’

“Councils anticipation it volition spell away. The sound abusers’ rights substance much than my rights arsenic a susceptible person," she argues.

Sarah is present calling for a nationalist wide of noisy neighbour regulations and for stronger regulations governing the rights of the victims of alleged noisy neighbour abuse.

“It is capable to marque you suicidal. I americium terrified idiosyncratic is going to dice due to the fact that a sound quality escalates and nary 1 does thing astir it,” she says.

"It is clip to act. I person followed the rules, and nary 1 cares. Noise maltreatment victims intelligibly are not shouting loudly enough.”

Fabulous has contacted Sarah's section assembly for a comment.