A young couple who live in a flat where you "can hear the neighbours' conversation and footsteps" have said Stevenage Borough Council didn't take enough action to address their concerns seriously.
Three years ago, the couple - who asked to remain anonymous - moved into the newbuild block of nine flats in Rockingham Way.
They live on the first floor of the Stevenage Borough Council property with their two-year-old daughter,- meaning they have neighbours above and below them and say you can hear conversations and footsteps, keeping them up and night
The council has said the noise transfer level is marginal and they have worked with the tenant extensively whenever he’s contacted them to investigate.
The 32-year-old dad told the Comet: "The noise is ridiculous. we have been complaining for three years to the council.
"I can hear a normal conversation from downstairs, I paid for better quality carpets but it hasn't made much of a difference.
"Sometimes in the middle of the night there is banging and cupboard doors opening and closing. Our neighbour is living his normal life which is fair enough. The quality of the build is so poor - the council did a second noise monitoring test and it failed.
"Our daughter has been diagnosed with asthma. We showed our doctor a picture of mould in the flat and they said that it would be playing a huge factor in her breathing.
"My partner suffers with her mental health, her doctor has upped her dosage of medication - and I have been put on anti-depressants."
The pair have been together for six years and say the problems with the flat have taken a toll on their relationship
He said: "Our daughter stays at my mums so she can get a full night sleep. Our relationship has been up and down because of the stress.
"They did offer to put another ceiling in but we deferred to get advice. We went to a meeting on a Thursday, they wanted to put us in a hotel on the Monday. How do they expect us to do that. we can't be put into a hotel for three weeks and be uprooted like this?"
A Stevenage Borough Council spokesperson said: “We’re sorry to hear one of our tenants is unsatisfied, even after the council’s extensive efforts to resolve the issue.
"The team can confirm the tenant first contacted the council in relation to sound issues in October 2019, and the issue was referred to the Environmental Health Service which carried out a comprehensive review, including the installation of sound monitoring equipment.
"The outcome of this assessment was that the level of noise within the property did not indicate any issues with the sound insulation of the building.
“In October 2021, the tenant raised their concerns in regards to the sound proofing at the property once more, so the council arranged for a further sound assessment.
"The outcome of this assessment was generally positive in confirming that most noise transfers were not at problematic levels, except for in one instance.
"In this instance there was a marginal noise transfer between flats equivalent to 2 decibels. 2 decibels would register as a whisper, given that a person’s normal breathing is measured at 10 decibels. This alone does not credit an urgency to be moved.
“As a result, remedial works were offered to the tenant to rectify the issue, which would see an enhancement of the sound insulation.
"The current ceiling height in the property is well above average heights of new build homes and would comfortably allow for the remedial works to be carried out.
"At present the tenant has opted to defer the work. We are meeting with the tenant to explain what the work will entail and if they’ll allow us to start the improvements.
“In regards to the damp and mould, this was first reported to the council only last month and an inspection was arranged which was cancelled by the tenant on the morning it was scheduled for.
"It was then rescheduled when he finally got back in touch with us last week.
“The council has at all times investigated and responded to the concerns raised by the resident in a prompt and professional manner co-operating fully with the tenant.”
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