Image
The council won the John Connell Noise App Award 2021 at the Noise Abatement Society's annual awards ceremony held at the Palace of Westminster.
Now in their 20th year, the awards are known as the ‘Noise Oscars’ and are named after the society's founder John Connell.
The Noise App award recognises local authorities who have made best use of the app to respond to, investigate and resolve noise complaints.
Announcing the winner the Noise Abatement Society said: "North Somerset Council has used the Noise App to its full potential, gathering real time evidence to identify behaviour disturbances out of hours, which would have otherwise been impossible. The app also enabled investigation of cases throughout Covid without a break in their service."
Gloria Elliott, the society's Chief Executive, said: "Dealing with the volume of noise-generated complaints 24/7 is a huge challenge and we congratulate North Somerset Council on using the Noise App to its optimum to achieving substantially increased customer satisfaction."
"The Noise App is a valuable addition to the tools that our environmental protection team can use to investigate complaints," said Cllr Mike Bell, the council's executive member responsible for public health and regulatory services.
"Previously residents would be asked to provide a written record of a noise nuisance. With the Noise App they can record the nuisance and submit a complaint straightaway. This helps our officers to establish very quickly if a problem exists, what the issues are and identify solutions.
"Messaging through the app has speeded up the process and improved our lines of communication with residents, particularly during the pandemic. It has enabled us to continue to provide a 24-hour service and gather evidence when call-outs and face-to-face visits have been difficult due to lockdowns."
For more information about how to log a noise complaint go to www.n-somerset.gov.uk/noisecomplaints.
To take action the council must be able to prove that the nuisance is affecting the enjoyment of a person's property on a regular or continuous basis.
Complaints cannot be anonymous as the investigation will rest on the impact the nuisance has on the complainant. If the complainant doesn't provide their details it will not be possible to assess how they are being affected.
Pictured with the award are (l-r): Rob White, Environmental Health Officer; Dee Mawn, Environmental Health Service Manager; Jo Churchill MP, Under Secretary of State for Defra, who presented the award; Lindsay Howe, Environmental Health Officer; Richard Allard, Senior Scientific Officer; and Jonathan Williams, of RHE Global, sponsors of the award.