Roof Replacement noise

[BeaTwix]

I live very close to a public building.

On three sides this building is surrounded by blocks of flats. These are big blocks each containing around 40 homes. I’m explaining this to illustrate that despite its central London location it is in a residential area.

The local authority have rules about construction noise saying it cannot take place at all on Sundays and bank holidays and only between the hours of 9-2pm on Saturdays.

I’m aware that some may argue maintenance vs construction work but I do think the noise guidelines exist as guidance to reasonable working hours.

Despite this the team who manage the public building keep organising all the noisy work on the building over weekend/public holidays. Presumably to avoid disrupting those who work in/ use the building.

Over August bank holiday 2025 they ripped out and reinstalled air conditioning and in Summer 2023 they replaced the roof they are once again working on over a bank holiday weekend.

I keep raising my concerns directly and via the council noise team. The noise team have in the past shut the site down and forced the contractors to leave (that was on a bank holiday). Once again I was woken up before 9am both yesterday and today by contractors using power tools.

AIBU to be frustrated at the lack of consideration to local residents?

It is essential work to the roofing of people’s homes.

Dont cause a stink about it

Her post literally says it's a public ie office building.

of Course the rules should apply to public buildings and maintenance of them. Most noise is maintenance… I’d be kicking up too. It’s a residential area just like any other. Bloody cheek

And in order to be functional as a public building it needs a roof replacement.

Which can be done in the appropriate hours.

It shouldn’t matter what the building is they should stick to the hours permitted. If it’s happening constantly then keep reporting. It’s unfair to have continuous disturbance. If it’s an occasional one off I’d probably let go. I’d be more sympathetic to them if they have the courtesy to let people around know.’

But if something is urgent and / or safety critical, the council can proceed outside of ordinary hours because it is in the public interest

If it is safety critical , the council absolutely has the power (and indeed duty) to override normal hours due to extraordinary circumstances. This is clearly one such work

I think it’s highly unlikely that replacing a roof safety critical.

More likeky that it was leaking.

Even if it was “safety critical” how do you explain away the air conditioning works over August bank holiday?

Is the problem that they need access for a mobile cranes and deliveries, that can only be done at weekends, because it involves shutting / blocking roads or vehicles going the wrong way down one-way streets. In any case I would have thought the site manager and the council would be better placed to explain than internet non-entities.

Replacing the entire roof of a public building (library?) is likely to be have absolutely necessary given the costs. Councils don’t generally do this unless critical!

This is a very densely populated area by the sounds of it. By doing the work over the weekend, all the vehicles and local disruption to traffic etc is kept to a minimum. .

Have you heard of legionnaires?

If its a place of education the works have to be done in the holidays to avoid disrupting the learning.
Roofs absolutely are critical for safety. A leaking roof can cause the whole internal ceiling to collapse.
If they have only done work in August bank hol and before that in 2023 I don't think there is much to complain about.

Ok So I understand that they schedule work to suit the demand of the building however it’s not educational, nor is it council owned - think offices. There will be reduced usage of it over the Christmas period.

But I still think deliberately scheduling work over weekends and public holidays. Especially with contractors who start super early and without neighbour notification is a big fuck you gesture to the local community.

We get a lot of filming locally - always get notified. Same with major road works.

Serious power tool usage <5 metres from bedroom windows. Nah. Don’t need to tell the people who live there or delay the start until 9am.

Usually they notify you?
this time they didn’t?

ok so almost certainly safety critical

I’ve lived here for 8 years. There have been major disruptive works like this on this building at weekends/public holidays with no notification and in contravention of the noise policy for the location of your building most years.

The behaviour continues despite contact by me, other residents groups, the local councillors and the noise team

It’s not exactly considerate is it?

Where appropriate work can happen outside of the permitted hours, you can get a permit. I know a business locally that reroofed over August bank holiday - they needed to close a road so couldn’t happen Monday to Friday due to schools nearby.

Ok. Very mixed responses….

They have never notified us about any work. Which is my main grouse - after all the problems with previous work - letters/ emails from local residents, councillor involvement and their site being shut find by the noise team - I can’t believe they didn’t bother. It is just so rude. I suspect the people managing the work internally have probably changed and the institutional memory has lost the knowledge. But how can you project manage work in. Residential area and not think about the sodding neighbours?

Ironically if they had needed a crane lift /road closure we would have been notified the highways dept are meticulous about that.

Second grouse is the frequency of work - All of the residential buildings (even with post Grenfell legislative changes) have had <1 major works episode in 8 years. The public building has had pretty much one a year. They are currently replacing a roof that has only been on for two years. The waste is mind boggling. It’s a listed building and the 2023 return was controversial from a heritage point of view due to some of the changes they made which destroyed some of the character and detracted from it.

Lastly, yes they might need to do it at the weekend /public holidays but don’t start so bloody early. I (and others) object a lot less to being disturbed at 9am on a bank holiday vis 07:45.
(small children days are well past).

You live in a very densely populated part of a very densely populated capital city.

The roof replacement of a public building would be a massive job and cause massive disruption to transport and offices. I think they were sensible (and well within regs as they will have applied for an extension to permitted working hours)

Them’s the breaks

Bet they haven’t applied for an extension to the regs….

The failure to do so is why they have had their site shut down during previous work. Extension to regs also meant to be subject to neighbour notification.

And it is densely populated. And residential. Which is why the regs should be adhered to. Because at weekends it is quiet!!!