DHFC noise disturbance, evening match

[red devil]

That's what happens when you try to dub step around the Christmas tree steveo...

[DulwichGlobetrotter]

And so... a myth grew about the Phantom Drummer of Champion Hill...

Some said you could hear him banging away on winter evenings but none had seen his goulish face... or his drum...

Anyway, Merry Christmas everyone!

[James Barber]

Many thanks for the kind offer for a free match ticket. But I never ever accept gifts from non friends or family. All the research shows even the smallest of gifts influences people even if sub consciously.

I've attended home matches and had lots of fun. Admittedly on Saturdays. I also think the club is an asset to the area.

The OP thought it was from a drum. Either way their kids couldn't get to sleep on a school night. Any parent would have angst about that especially as it isn't the first time.

For heavens sake I'd like the club to be an even bigger success. With its future assured. But neighbours who have concerns should be listened to without online bullying. Listening to neighbours is in the interest of the club.

Inbetweener, Perhaps worth offering neighbours those boardroom tickets and discussing their genuine concerns.

Other neighbours of the club have emailed me to say they're sick of the PA at 9.40pm as they also have kids with much earlier bedtimes.

[DulwichFox]

That DHFC are a right rowdy mob..

Not content on drumming , I've seen that mob drinking beer after the game in The EDT.. It's outrageous..

Drinking beer.. what next..

Foxy..

[lbsmith73]

No wonder the Lib Dems got a hiding at the last election, perhaps Barber and his party should come down to see how to drum up (excuse the pun!!) more support, I am sure we could stretch to offering 8 free tickets!

[Otta]

That's helpful. On a thread that was quite likely designed to get responses like that.

[Inbetweener]

"Inbetweener, Perhaps worth offering neighbours those boardroom tickets and discussing their genuine concerns.

Other neighbours of the club have emailed me to say they're sick of the PA at 9.40pm as they also have kids with much earlier bedtimes."

You simply miss the point, in that you are prepared to take as gospel a poster on here, but are not prepared to listen to people who were at the match and have posted on here.

I totally take your point of not wanting a free ticket, but the reason I offered you the chance to pop into the Boardroom was that you could then express your concerns, whether based on fact or not, to those on the Football Club Committee, who run the Club.

It clearly would not be practical to allow local residents, generally, into the Boardroom on a matchday, as it has a limited capacity, with club officials from both sides, sponsors and so on.

But if there is anyone out there who might want to see what it's like on a Hamlet matchday, if you've not been to Champion Hill before, please feel free to email me & I will arrange some free tickets for a home Ryman League match sometime in January. Anyone can email me at [email protected] My real name is Mishi Morath.

Also, with regard to addressing peoples' concerns...that would be very difficult to do, as I do not believe there is a problem with noise on a matchday, other than what you would expect at any football ground up and down the country, as I believe I tried to express in my previous post on this thread.

[Inbetweener]

And with regard to the PA at 9.40pm, the main 'noise' from this is before matches, and at half time. During a match, or at the final whistle, announcements are kept at a bare minimum, such as substitutions, goalscorers and so on. At the end it's a brief announcement to thank people for coming, mentioning the next game...and that's really it. You know, as happens at any and every football ground up and down the country, Premiership, Football League or non-league.

I am sure, as a conscientious councillor, you are aware-having been to matches before- that the noise levels of the PA are not excessive on a matchday, or you would have complained directly to the Club by now. We must BY LAW be able to be heard CLEARLY all over the ground, in case of any emergencies. By the very nature of this, some of the sound will carry outside the ground, in the immediate vicinity for a brief amount of time.

[Grok]

James Barber Wrote:

------------------------------------------------------

> Other neighbours of the club have emailed me to

> say they're sick of the PA at 9.40pm as they also

> have kids with much earlier bedtimes.

Again, James, please provide some facts and figures for these astonishing claims? Maybe info such as how many households have emailed you, on what days, concerning what noise, at what times? Oh, and why would they be emailing you rather than contacting the council noise team who can actually stop the noise if it is a problem but you cant?

James, i suspect you are being disingenuous in this matter even providing the noise team number on this thread to encourage people to complain, together with your local residency to the ground.

[Otta]

The other day I couldn't hear what the PA was saying from behind the goal.

[BrandNewGuy]

Madness! Won't anyone think of the children! What about the poor children who go to bed before 8.40? Or 7.40? Or what about people on nights who want to sleep at 10am?

There have been nine evening games at Champion Hill since the beginning of the season. That's twice a month. I suggest the councillor politely asks his constituents to live with it.

[beagle1]

I have returned to this thread to delete the word drumming from the subject since I understand there were no drums at the match and this has been used to undermine my complaint. It may have been banging on the hoardings. That it was not produced by actual drums doesn't alter the fact that it was too much noise too late for a weekday evening in a residential area. It doesn't alter the fact that it kept my kids awake (combined with the PA announcements, the last one of which we heard from indoors at 9.40pm). Tired children don't care whether they are being kept awake by happy sounds or unhappy sounds. They just need to sleep. The claim that noise complaints aren't viable because the stadium predates some local housing would be funny if it weren't so clearly intended to silence the club's neighbours. The date the stadium was built is irrelevant - all noise complaints are logged by the Council and taken seriously. It would be really nice to see the club, which prides itself on being socially enlightened, engage with its neighbours in a more considerate and constructive way than has been displayed on this thread.

[BrandNewGuy]

Intermittent noise until 9.40pm twice a month is not unreasonable.

And I have nothing to do with the club, so don't include my responses in you 'us v them' attitude.

[Otta]

beagle1 I am glad you've come back on here to engage (I admit I thought you were a troll who had just dropped a bomb then sat back and watched theaftermath).

So in the interests of actual useful discussion, what would you suggest the club do? Serious question, not intended to be inflammatory, I am curious as to what would appease you?

PA Announcements could I suppose be turned down (although as I said before, I can't always hear them clearly within the ground), and fans could be asked not to bang on hordings (not that I've seen that much of that going on). But the club is pretty limited in what it can do to keep fans quiet.

Also, two questions.

1. Is it POSSIBLE that the noise came from elsewhere that evening (like a band practising in a house)?

2. Do you have double glazing?

I am not calling you a liar, and I have nothing to do with the club, but I am genuinely surprised tht noise would be an issue half a mile away with windows closed (as you report in your OP).

I fully agree that it is in the best interests of the club to engage with it's neighbours, but the neighbours need to be willing to engage too, so let's all take a chill pill and try to have a useful discussion...

[beagle1]

Well, far from being a troll, I was just put off returning to this thread by the trolling I was subjected to on it. Having been branded variously a liar, troll, kill-joy and opera obsessive and been instructed to go and live in a Surrey village, I welcome your two positive suggestions Otta. Both those things, turning down the PA announcements and asking fans not to bang on hoardings, would I think make a difference to the club's neighbours and be greatly appreciated, especially in the evenings. And no, there is honestly no way I or my kids mistook the noise. It came from the direction of the stadium and was unmistakably the sound of a really large number of people banging rhythmically on something in the open air; it also took place only while the match was taking place. You would be surprised how far that kind of rhythmic beating noise carries. Double glazing is a red herring! Heres to a happy new year - happy for the club, happy for its neighbours.

[macutd]

Just a thought!

What do all the other football grounds around the country do?

They must by much louder than DHFC

[Sue]

beagle1 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Double glazing is a red herring!

Why is that?

I installed double glazing in my bedroom because intermittent (but frequent) noise from outside (not planes) was disturbing my sleep every night and in the morning.

Seems like a good solution to me if this apparent noise twice a month is causing such distress?

[NewWave]

I used to live around the corner from Stamford Bridge.

On match days depending on the weather conditions you could hear the music played in the ground and the babble of commentary.as well as the roar of the crowd.

it is to my mind something you put up with if you live near a football ground.

And anyway, its only at most a couple of times a week and always ends at a decent hour for evening games.

TBH being under a flightpath and having yuppie neighbours who had loud weekend dinner parties bothered me a lot more than the noise the football club generated...FACT

[Luoisa]

beagle1 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Well, far from being a troll, I was just put off

> returning to this thread by the trolling I was

> subjected to on it. Having been branded variously

> a liar, troll, kill-joy and opera obsessive and

> been instructed to go and live in a Surrey

> village, I welcome your two positive suggestions

> Otta. Both those things, turning down the PA

> announcements and asking fans not to bang on

> hoardings, would I think make a difference to the

> club's neighbours and be greatly appreciated,

> especially in the evenings. And no, there is

> honestly no way I or my kids mistook the noise. It

> came from the direction of the stadium and was

> unmistakably the sound of a really large number of

> people banging rhythmically on something in the

> open air; it also took place only while the match

> was taking place. You would be surprised how far

> that kind of rhythmic beating noise carries.

> Double glazing is a red herring! Heres to a happy

> new year - happy for the club, happy for its

> neighbours.

Why on earth did you move next door to a football ground in the first place ?

You do not seem to be in receipt of much sense to complain about an extant feature.

[James Barber]

Hi NewWave,

What you and I as adults consider a reasonable time isn't relevant to kids. They should be getting 12 hours sleep and still getting to school in the morning.

Hi Luoisa,

The law does not make that distinction. This works two-ways.

Equally should the club be limited from going up leagues because it wasn't in that league when it moved there.

Ideally the club flourishes and the neighbours are happy. This is perfectly achievable .

[steveo]

'Equally should the club be limited from going up leagues because it wasn't in that league when it moved there'

That's a non sequitur James.

I don't think you're doing yourself any favours on this thread

[Luoisa]

James Barber Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hi NewWave,

> What you and I as adults consider a reasonable

> time isn't relevant to kids. They should be

> getting 12 hours sleep and still getting to school

> in the morning.

>

> Hi Luoisa,

> The law does not make that distinction. This works

> two-ways.

> Equally should the club be limited from going up

> leagues because it wasn't in that league when it

> moved there.

>

>

> Ideally the club flourishes and the neighbours are

> happy. This is perfectly achievable .

response of the year

Just quoting it for the record.

[BrandNewGuy]

James Barber Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hi NewWave,

> What you and I as adults consider a reasonable

> time isn't relevant to kids. They should be

> getting 12 hours sleep and still getting to school

> in the morning.

So no external noises after 7pm that might wake them? Buses, planes, car doors closing? People talking in the street?

Absolute madness.

[rabbitears]

James Barber Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hi NewWave,

> What you and I as adults consider a reasonable

> time isn't relevant to kids. They should be

> getting 12 hours sleep and still getting to school

> in the morning.

>

> Hi Luoisa,

> The law does not make that distinction. This works

> two-ways.

> Equally should the club be limited from going up

> leagues because it wasn't in that league when it

> moved there.

1) unfortunately it's not possible to ensure that everywhere in London is quiet after every child's bedtime. It's simply not realistic.

2) you should be happy to live next to a football ground. There's time-limited noise once or twice a week during the season. The other 6 days and 21 hours of the week nothing's happening and no-one can build anything there. I've lived above a Chinese restaurant, opposite a bar and a McDonalds, and on a busy shopping street. Now they were noisy from the sounds of people coming and going but no-one would have suggested that catering, public transport or shops should all close at 7.30pm.

If people moan about the football, I'm sure some dodgy developer can be persuaded to build a retail park and some cheapo flats on top of it if the right councillors can be persuaded (PS Southwark popped up recently in Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs column). Then you can look forward to being woken at 4am by deliveries to TK Maxx and the smell of Subway.

3) your "shouldn't be allowed to move up the leagues" comment is loopy. You're in a hole. Stop digging.

[Penguin68]

Firstly, it is simply not true that children ?need? 12 hours of sleep ? children do of course differ, both between each other and over time, but it is normally the parents who ?need? the children to sleep 12 hours, to give them some evening time free of them, rather than any children?s need for sleep. Children can readily sleep a normal adult sleep cycle (7-8 hours) and perform well during the day although often in their early teens they do become tired earlier. I am often amused when friends tell me that they put their children to bed at 7:30 but then are regularly disturbed by them waking them in the early mornings (by which time the children have had all the sleep they need, even if their parents, going to bed much later, haven?t).

Secondly, once asleep, children (particularly young children) are not easily disturbed. You can carry them up to bed, change them into pajamas and they hardly rouse, once they have fallen asleep. So a little noise is not actually going to wake them up, although it might disturb them (particularly if they see their parents disturbed) if they are still awake. Going into their rooms and asking them if they are having a problem sleeping is normally a good way of ensuring they do have a problem. A counter-noise (say music that they like, on a loop) is a good way of over-riding any disturbing noise from outside.

I think, once again, Mr James (Dean) Barber is in search of a cause. Once again he has chosen a dud.