The rampART social centre has been served with a noise abatement order this week after claims of so-called statutory nuisance during samba band practise on the 9th Nov. Breach of the order could result in prosecution and upto 20,000 pouns fine and seizure of 'noise making equipement'.
Samba practise has been taking place at the rampART from around 8pm till 10pm most wednesdays for the last few months. However the noise excaping the building on the 9th was greater than previously due to a smashed window pane at the front of the building.
There is discussion about the possibility of appealing the noise abatement order as there are good grounds to overturn the order. However, no legal aid is available for such an action and failure would result in thousands of pounds in court costs. Additional it might result in an order against a named person instead of simply 'the occupier'.
Samba practise has been taking place at the rampART from around 8pm till 10pm most wednesdays for the last few months. However the noise excaping the building on the 9th was greater than previously due to a smashed window pane at the front of the building.
There is discussion about the possibility of appealing the noise abatement order as there are good grounds to overturn the order. However, no legal aid is available for such an action and failure would result in thousands of pounds in court costs. Additional it might result in an order against a named person instead of simply 'the occupier'.
When the rampART was orginally opened in the summer of 2004, the collective sound proofed the hall before the first event was allowed to take place. Recently however there has been trouble with local kids smashing the windows and trying to set light to the sound proofing. These attacks have compromised despite constant attempts to repair and patch up the windows.
As a result of a complaint by a neighbour on the 9th, a proposal was made at last mondays weekly rampART meeting that the hall windows should be bricked up to further improve the sound proofing and address the problem of the kids smashing the windows and poking burning paper and boxes of matches through the holes.
Around 400 pounds worth of reclaimed bricks have been delivered to the rampART and work has begun on bricking up the windows (adding 22 db of sound attenuation). Many people have volunteers to help, if you fancy learning a bit of brick laying, then pop in over the next few days. As the sound proofing improves, ventilation issues will become worse and will need to be addresses. Extractor fans and ducting are be sought to provide forced air circulation (if you have something suitable, for example car radiator fans, then please donate them to the rampART).
As well as the works on the sound proofing, the samba band have agreed to begin and end their practise an hour earlier than previously. Additional anyone attending events at the rampART are asked to be considerate of the neighbours especially when leaving (previous complaints have generally been about people being noising outsite rather than music excaping from the hall). People are also asked to refrain from pissing in the street which actually seems to be the core complaint of the neighbour who got the council involved!
As a result of a complaint by a neighbour on the 9th, a proposal was made at last mondays weekly rampART meeting that the hall windows should be bricked up to further improve the sound proofing and address the problem of the kids smashing the windows and poking burning paper and boxes of matches through the holes.
Around 400 pounds worth of reclaimed bricks have been delivered to the rampART and work has begun on bricking up the windows (adding 22 db of sound attenuation). Many people have volunteers to help, if you fancy learning a bit of brick laying, then pop in over the next few days. As the sound proofing improves, ventilation issues will become worse and will need to be addresses. Extractor fans and ducting are be sought to provide forced air circulation (if you have something suitable, for example car radiator fans, then please donate them to the rampART).
As well as the works on the sound proofing, the samba band have agreed to begin and end their practise an hour earlier than previously. Additional anyone attending events at the rampART are asked to be considerate of the neighbours especially when leaving (previous complaints have generally been about people being noising outsite rather than music excaping from the hall). People are also asked to refrain from pissing in the street which actually seems to be the core complaint of the neighbour who got the council involved!
Comments
Hide the following 8 comments
Thanks for giving the cops a stick to beat us with
18.11.2005 10:12
By publishing this news on this site, you have drawn the attention of the political police in the Met to an issue which was up until now simply a matter between Ramparts and the local council.
The police will certainly exploit this as an opportunity you have presented them.
Doh....
x
Resonable
18.11.2005 10:22
I think that the reques of not pissing in the street is a reasonable one, you can not really blame someone for asking that, and in fact people already should know that you can not do that unless it is in your own house.
Fred
When will the rampart squaters grow up?
18.11.2005 11:07
Realist
giving the cops a stick...
18.11.2005 11:10
raveller
whats the legal position???
18.11.2005 11:43
so i'm kinda concerned about what the legal psition is on all this ,
as someone who's involved in putting on a benefit party in a few weeks time
and who also owns sound equipment , what powers does this noise abatement
order give the cops to stop the party and/or is it likly they would try to seize
the sound system ....... any info anyone ?
barbara von butch
Sticks and drums
18.11.2005 11:47
The rampART is better sound proofed than most pubs and most previous complaints have been about people hanging around outside and have no relation to music from inside. One of the neighbours is musician that does band practise in his bedroom with the windows open and the rampART has been unfairly blamed for this noise. Only last saturday the council turned up in the afternoon to say there had been a complaint that afternoon and yet no event was taking place!
The rampART notice provides no guidance about times or unreasonable levels which obviously makes it hard very hard for anyone doing events at the rampART know when they are breeching the notice. Most notices issued to nightclubs for example would define conditions in terms of level of sound and/or time limitations or in terms of work to be carried out to mitigate against noise. The failure of the notice to clearly define what constitutes a breech provide good grounds for appeal.
Enforcement and succesful prosecution for a breech of the current notice would problemmatic but it would be better to simply avoid annoying the neighbours in th first place.
q
Proper soundproofing
18.11.2005 17:04
American Anarchist
sound proofing
18.11.2005 23:11
As the above post says, the rampART windows have all ready been sound proofed and are now being bricked up in order to increase the noise attenuation and address the problem caused by the kids smashing the windows.
t