Kids fighting and shouting in the garden until 9pm

[NameChangeAsICouldBeOverReacting]

Would you be happy if your neighbour’s children were fighting, shouting and screaming whilst playing football in the garden until 9pm?
The three children are aged 7-16 and the older ones tend to bully the youngest which causes him to shout and argue with them. The parents never intervene or ask them to keep it down.

It’s waking up our 3 year old and 7 month old, even over white noise, as their rooms overlook the garden and we’re in a Victorian terrace, so we’re getting frustrated with it. The sound is so loud that I can hear it through the monitor clearly.

We genuinely don’t mind playing, laughing, talking, we get that kids are loud, but the constant shouting, bickering and screaming as balls constantly bash against the wall is starting to drive us a bit insane.

How much do people tolerate before asking the parents to intervene?

No one minds kids playing but screaming is annoying. No need for it.

You have a toddler and a 7 month old in a terraced house. I find it difficult to believe that your kids never disturb them crying or waking in the night.

I'd let this one slide OP. It all part and parcel of living in close quarters and I'd put money on them putting up with as much from you as you are from them.

Terraced housing inevitably means more noise transference than, say, a semi-detached, and is not dissimilar to living in a flat. You’re in very close proximity to your neighbours and sharing walls on all sides.

As your children get older, they will be making more noise too. I can understand the shouting and screaming is annoying, but surely the late evening football will decrease once they are back at school and the evenings get shorter and darker.

That's what kids do though. They're noisy OP will soon find thos our for herself.

As a parent I'd be embarrassed to be disturbing others and make sure my kids were quieter / indoors. But it seems unlikely the parents of these kids will care much if you say anything. Or nay have no control. They may be outside as they also shout in the house.

9.00 isn't too bad though I understand your children need to go to sleep earlier. Could you swap bedrooms around so they're on the other side of the house?

Correction that’s what some kids do - because their parents let them.

Sadly, this isn’t just a summer thing, it’s pretty much all year round.

Yes, we can keep our windows open but during that 32c heatwave, we need them open.

It seems like there’s very much a divide on this and what’s acceptable.

We get that kids will be kids but these are teens and preteens, aside from the younger two siblings, shouting, fighting and screaming.
A baby genuinely cannot help but cry, so feel like you can’t really compare to purposely shouting when it’s possible not to.

Ultimately it isn’t illegal for them to be making this sort of racket at 9pm. At 11,12,1am you’d be able to make a complaint but not at 9pm.

Morally it is inconsiderate and most parents would obviously intervene. There are some neighbours that just do not care about the noise they make. Our neighbour regularly decides to start loud DIY at 9,10pm despite being home during the day.

It is up to you if you want to speak to the parents and just see if they can have a word with the kids. I agree with other posters as well you’ll probably find your kids just as loud one day though x

I think it’s obnoxious but also perfectly legal. I can’t see what you’d achieve by talking to the parents except creating a bad situation but you’re the only one who knows the family.

An aquaintance of mine is a landlord. A neighbour came whinging about his tenants that the children were noisy in the garden and they cut the lawn on a saturday morning. The LLs response was that they are doing nothing to break their lease as these are normal domestic noises taking place at acceptable social hours. He said that he was not going to nag his tenants and sour their relationship because he could be accused of harassing them. Therefore they (the NDN) would have to find their own way of dealing with the situation.