How to make an official complaint

Take time to ensure that you accurately locate the property the nuisance is coming from.

• Complete all sections of the nuisance record sheet, making sure you capture the facts of each incident and the effect on you or your family. Keep records for at least two weeks or six entries.
• Make sure you enter both a start and finish time for the noise. If you only enter a start time we have no idea how long the noise continues. It is also important to be accurate about the duration of the noise – if you enter misleading information and the investigation moves on to noise monitoring the recordings will not verify the information and the case is likely to be closed due to lack of evidence.
• If anyone else witnessed the nuisance and would be willing to support you, remember to put their details in the “name of other witnesses” column. This is most useful when the witness is independent of your family e.g. police, housing officer
• Try to keep entries as legible as possible, and if you have a complaint reference number remember to include this in the box provided.
• The Council cannot be responsible for the loss of any evidence submitted, so please remember to keep a copy.