A memo from Southwark Noise Czar

Cormorants need their beauty sleep. It's hard work sunning our wings all afternoon. Potters Fields Trust wants a license for all-night amplified fair-trade yodelling. This memo from Southwark's Noise Czar (pbuh) is reassuring. But, and it's a big but, I suspect the applicants and the GLA want to water it down. Anyway for your edification I present...

To Southwark
MEMO: Noise & Air Quality Team
Telephone 020 7525 5701
Fax 020 7525 5768
Email Noise@southwark.gov.uk


Subject
Potters Field Park , Tooley Street SE1
The Noise Team have received many complaints from past events. There are residential properties in the area including the Tower of London. I would ask that the following conditions be considered :-

1. The licensee shall appoint a suitable qualified and experienced noise control consultant, to the approval of the Licensing Authority, as soon as is practical prior to each musical event, or any event that is likely to cause excessive noise. The noise control consultant shall liase between all parties including the Licensee, Promoter, sound system suppliers, sound engineers, and officers of The Council.

2. The noise control consultant shall carry out a survey to determine the background noise levels (as defined by the Code of Practice on Environmental Noise Control at Concerts) at appropriate locations. This shall include the highest available residential façade to account for free field conditions. The information from this survey to be made available to the licensing authority at least one week prior to any event that is likely to cause excessive noise.

3. A noise propagation test shall be undertaken prior to the performance in order to set appropriate control limits at the sound mixer positions. The sound system(s) shall be configured and operated in a similar manner as intended for the event. The sound source shall be to be similar in character to the music produced during the event.
4. The control limits set at the mixer positions shall be adequate to ensure the Music noise Level shall not at any noise sensitive premises exceed 65 dB(A) at the nearest external facade over a fifteen minute period throughout any rehearsal, sound check or performance. The level will drop to 55dB(A) after 22:30 hours. The Sound Engineer / Consultant shall remain on location throughout the duration of performance, and be in overall control over any artistes’ dedicated Sound Engineers.

5. The Licensee shall ensure that the promoter, and all sound engineers are informed of the sound control limits and that instructions from the noise control consultant regarding noise levels are implemented.

6. The noise control consultant shall, at 45 minute intervals, monitor the noise levels at the designated positions and advise the sound engineer accordingly to ensure that the noise limits and Trading Standards Division shall have access to the results of the noise monitoring .

7. The Licensee shall ensure that all requests from the noise consultant and Noise Team officers and complied with.

8. There shall be no movement of equipment by vehicles over 7.5 tonnes between the hours of 24:00hours and 08:00 hours.

9.Announcements to be made at the end of each evenings entertainment asking patrons to leave quietly.

10. Details of a telephone number permanently manned during performances to be made available to the Noise Team prior to the event.

11. At least two weeks prior to the event a leaflet drop is to be made to households in surrounding premises nearby. The addresses notified must be supplied to the Licensing and Noise Team, and the leaflet to include the date and times of performances, a description of each performance, and a contact telephone number.

12. The performers likely to be noisiest such as pop groups, singers, bands and choirs etc. shall be scheduled to perform so as to avoid the most sensitive times of late evenings and all day Sunday.

13. Music must cease at the specified time on the licence.

14. No separate sound / music system shall be operated within the application site except those specified in the applicant Licence.

15. The hours in which an event shall take place, will be negotiated between the applicant, the Licensing Unit & the Noise Team.

Regards