Sports pitches at Cornwallis Academy in Boughton Monchelsea near Maidstone, Kent (Picture: SWNS)
Referees have been banned from blowing their whistles on a local football pitch after angry neighbours complained about the noise.
Cornwallis Academy near Maidstone has been unable to use their football pitch since August because of a ban on whistles by Maidstone Council.
It has meant a new £700,000 sports pitch in Kent is going unused.
Not only has the school been banned from using it, but so have local sports clubs who use it on evenings and weekends.
The council expressed concern about the noise impact of the pitch during construction, which the school responded to by saying they would ban whistles outside of school hours.
Their proposal was accepted and the pitch was built in January 2023 on the condition a no-whistle policy was applied.
But the rule was never upheld, which led to neighbours complaining of the nose pollution caused by whistles, which now went on long past school hours and continued at weekends.
A secondary school has been unable to use its new £700k sports pitch – because the noise from referees’ whistles upsets the neighbours (Picture: SWNS)
When one angry resident reported the council for failing to enforce its own planning conditions, the authority was obliged to threaten enforcement action against the school.
But because the academy had breached its planning permission, the pitch could now not be used at all – even during school hours by the students.
Since then, both the school and council have been trying to find a solution.
A noise survey produced by the school allegedly shows that the use of the pitch causes little to no disturbance – but neighbours claim the sound of the whistles is a constant source of disturbance.
Planning officers are also questioning whether they had the power to impose a no-whistle condition in the first place.
So far there have been 49 letters in support of the application to lift the whistle ban, with 19 opposed.
One local noted: ‘It is very easy for people living nowhere near the school to support the application, but we come home after work and have to live with the noise.’
Neighbours claim over 100 complaints have been lodged so far
Another added: ‘Residents were assured that they would not hear any noise louder than mild conversation.
‘We were in fact subjected to loud shouting, screaming, kicking of balls, whistles and fences rattling for hour after hour, seven days a week.’
‘The disturbance makes it impossible to enjoy our own gardens in peace. We are unable to keep our windows open. The noise can be heard in every room in the house, even with the windows closed.’
Another complaint came from a mum who outlined the impact the lack of enforcement over the ‘no whistle’ policy was having on her son.
She said: ‘Our son has ADHD and the bedtime routine is a huge part of his coping strategy.
‘He simply cannot get to sleep with the excited shouting, whooping and whistle-blowing since the 3G pitch was opened.
‘The sleep deprivation this is causing our son is making him grumpy, irritable, restless and he is having trouble paying attention at school. This will have a detrimental effect on the outcome of his GCSE results as he is in year 11.
The school are looking for ways to deal with the complaint (Picture: SWNS)
‘The noise must stop for his mental wellbeing and ours.’
Dave and Val Sanderson, of Salts Avenue, are also among those who complained.
Val Sanderson said: ‘We are reasonable people. We have no objection to the school use. It’s the out-of-school use that is making our lives a misery.
Dave told Kent Online: ‘The school set up a complaints line. I submitted an FOI and found they had 125 complaints. There would be more, but people have probably stopped complaining because it’s so difficult to get through, and then nothing happens anyway.’
Mason Dixon, spokesman for the Future Schools Trust which runs the Cornwallis Academy, said: ‘The inability to use our state-of-the-art 3G pitch since August has significantly disrupted our physical education curriculum.
‘This facility is vital for delivering safe, high-quality activities, especially during adverse weather conditions when alternative outdoor spaces, such as grass fields, are unsuitable and unsafe.
‘Furthermore, the restriction has unfortunately prevented local sports teams and community groups from accessing this much needed resource.
‘Cornwallis Academy has always valued its role as a community hub, and we understand the importance of providing spaces that promote health, wellbeing, and social engagement.
‘We are grateful for the upcoming planning committee meeting on Thursday, which we hope will resolve the matter and allow the school and community to fully benefit from this exceptional facility.’
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