Environmental Health Out of Hours Service

What to do if you are being bothered by noise!

The Out of Hours Emergency Service exists to provide a response for residents affected by certain activities, which occur outside normal office hours.

It is an Emergency Service and should not be used simply to log complaints. The duty officer's are 'on call' from their homes and are not based in the office at these times.

The majority of calls received by the service concern noise and the following information is designed to help you use the system to deal with complaints of this nature.

10 Steps to Peace and Quiet!

1. If you have returned monitoring forms you can use the out of hours service at any time when the office is closed.
   
   
2. If you have not returned monitoring forms you can only use the service after 11pm at night.
3. If you wish to use the service please telephone freephone 0800 374485.
   
   
4. An operator will take your name, address, telephone number and the details of the complaint. The operator will then contact the duty officer.
   
   
5. The duty officer will telephone you to give advice and/or arrange a visit if necessary. You will be told at this stage whether your complaint is one that can be dealt with through the out of hours service.
   
   
6. If a visit is arranged the duty officer will need to call at your premises to witness the nuisance. This is very important. If we cannot witness the nuisance from your property we will be unable to take any further action. Therefore, if you are not willing to allow an officer to visit you, please do not use the out of hours service.
   
   
7. If the duty officer visits you he or she will be accompanied by a security guard or a police officer.
   
   
8. If the duty officer is satisfied that a nuisance exists he or she will take steps to resolve the problem. This may be done at the time of the visit or at another more appropriate time.
   
   
9. It may be necessary to serve an abatement notice on the person responsible for the nuisance.
   
   
10. If the nuisance continues after a notice has been served you should contact the Environmental Health service again. A duty Officer will visit to witness the noise and may decide to prosecute the person responsible for the nuisance. You may be required to provide a statement at this stage.
    

For further information/advice please contact Environmental Health during normal office hours on: 01329 236100 or e-mail regulatory@fareham.gov.uk.

Noise Problems