New Town residents have objected loudly to the temporary silencing of the clock chime at St Stephen’s Church.
Council officers required the action last week after four complaints and one query were received from neighbours – believed to be living in three new flats on St Vincent Place – concerning what they felt was excessive noise at night.
Environmental Health visited the site and, in an official’s own words (shown to the Spurtle by a third party):
Investigation of the noise from two of the properties showed that in one of the properties, the World Health Organisation guideline value of 45dB (LAFmax) for night time sleep disturbance was exceeded. Therefore, the noise from the clock chimes at night was considered to be a Statutory Noise Nuisance, which legally requires the Council to serve Notice. It is currently understood that the Council is responsible for maintaining the clock, although as the St Stephen Centre and clock tower were recently sold, this duty is still to be confirmed.
As it is not practicable for the Council to serve Notice on itself, informal discussions have taken place with the Public Safety team of the Council. As an interim arrangement, it was requested by the Noise Team that the clock chimes be switched off until remedial measures can be implemented. The Public Safety team are currently exploring the options available to resolve this complaint with the clock contractor.
People not adversely disturbed by the hourly chimes have reacted swiftly and angrily.
The St Stephen’s Playfair Trust, which until recently was trying to buy the church building, circulated an email recommending locals should contact their political representatives at all levels to protest against the Council’s action.
Ian Shaw contacted us saying he was astonished that years of tradition could so easily be 'snuffed out':
The chimes are, and always have been, a charming feature and integral to our community. As someone who lives as near to the clock tower as the complaints I think their attitude is arrogant, selfish and high handed. Surely the UNESCO World Heritage Conservation Area, Historic Scotland and the Cockburn Association, to name but a few, would have strong views on this?
What sort of sad society do we live in where a church clock tower bell is deemed a public safety issue? Many people in Edinburgh over the last 200 years and those living in the New Town/Stockbridge today enjoy the hourly chimes. [...] [T]he World Health Organisation provides guidelines, therefore why is there a legal obligation on the Council? [...] Are you also going to switch off the bells at St Giles as they no doubt cause a public safety issue too?
That last point was also picked up by David Jackson Young, an India Street resident who contacted Spurtle yesterday.
I don't know if St Stephen's is a particularly 'noisy' church, as measured against the WHO's guidelines, but this would seem to set a potential precedent for CEC's handling of other complaints about those damn nuisance bells that plague our city. Unless of course the precedent has already been set elsewhere?
I hope the Council will be equally responsive to any complaints from residents living near Edinburgh Castle about the nightly rattling of their windows by festive fireworks. Or to gripes from the inhabitants of Spurtleshire about the ubiquitous day-long crackle and hiss of traffic attendants' walkie-talkies. The chiming of a church bell is actually one of the more pleasant urban sounds, and I suspect most of us who live within earshot of St Stephen's regard the hourly peal as a friendly, comforting and familiar feature of the neighbourhood. For Edinburgh Council to silence the chimes after 186 years because of a few complaints seems, to put it mildly, a grossly misguided over-reaction. And perhaps the complainants themselves should do a little more local research the next time they’re looking for a new home.
If they ever move to Venice or Rome – or Oxford or Cambridge or Utrecht or Vienna, or any other supposedly 'world class' city – they are unlikely to find the authorities quite so compliant.
We contacted the Council first thing yesterday morning seeking detailed clarification. We waited all day for a response, and when it arrived this was it: ‘The bell has been temporarily silenced so that we can investigate concerns about noise.'
We realise that the Council is probably trying to be fair in this strict application of clumsy processes. However, common sense rebels against so small a group of local residents effecting changes without consultation of the wider community and against, we suspect, the wishes of the silent majority.
Until anyone can convince us otherwise, we lean towards those who regard any permanent silencing of the bell for the reasons given so far as an affront against natural justice and an act of vandalism upon the unique, cherished, historic soundscape of Edinburgh's World Heritage Site.
Where do you stand on this issue? Should Edinburgh move with the times or stick with tradition? spurtle@hotmail.co.uk @theSpurtle Broughton Spurtle
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@theSpurtle It seems justifiable that they be silenced during night time hours.
@theSpurtle Reasonable to adhere to WHO guidelines, I think! Such limited understanding of noise pollution issues in this city, generally.
Email from Annette McCann: This story reminds me of 'townies' who, moving to the countryside, complain about the noise of cocks crowing.
I agree with the notion that church bells are one of the few pleasant urban sounds.
I love St Stephen’s Church. Please let the old lady sing. Her bells in the darker hours ought to be a comfort.
@theSpurtle One of your correspondents mentions Italy, but it's normal practice that Church bells in that country are silent at night.
@theSpurtle Only German residents of Edinburgh seem to understand where I'm coming from on this issue!
Email from Caroline Roussot (Cumberland Street): I don't live within earshot of St Stephen's so have no horse in this race. But from the text of your article it seems that the bells continue to ring hourly throughout the night, which does seem to me to be rather excessive.
If you can't sleep, hourly reminders of your failure to get back to sleep can only add to the stress.
Various cosmopolitan centres are cited approvingly in the article, but I think you'll find that their church bells do not ring overnight. And St Stephen's is no longer a church.
Also the examples of other 'nuisance' noises are daytime or evening noises, when (presumably) what is being complained of by the St Vincent residents is the night-time portion of the noise.
I realise that your comment about 'not being able to afford earplugs' was facetious, but I have to say that I see no good reason for this noise, so don't really see why people should have to barricade their ears up against it. Earplugs would also sort out the problem of being woken at dawn by gulls. And then eye-masks would sort out the problem of having to look at the mess.
@theSpurtle We have a flat in St Stephen St which must be one of the closest to the old church. Bell noise is not an issue - absurd!
@NewTownFlaneur @theSpurtle Seems justifiable to take note of one's surroundings before buying a flat/signing a lease.
@JenBitesPeople @NewTownFlaneur @theSpurtle Yep I think that's fair. If conditions had changed they may have a point.
[Below is a vastly condensed conversation which began with @Obsolescence describing life within earshot of Waverley Station and the difficulty experienced in trying to get reduced the volume of platform announcements. For full context, see original Twitter thread on 2 September.]
@Obsolesence @theSpurtle I think argument: you don't have any right to complain about X if X existed prior to your arrival isn't strong one
@NewTownFlaneur @theSpurtle Well in this case they've managed to persuade CEC to at least pay attention to issue. I'm intrigued as to how
@Obsolesence @theSpurtle If CEC paid heed to wisdom of knee-jerk New Towners we'd still be wading through chicken carcasses & dirty nappies.
@Obsolesence @theSpurtle If locals so concerned for trad. soundscape of the New Town, perhaps they'd consider getting rid of their 4x4s.
@NewTownFlaneur @theSpurtle True. As I lay pondering my noisy nighttime world, it was quite shocking to realise how much we now put up with
@NewTownFlaneur @theSpurtle Tram clangs, bin men, licensed premises emptying bottles, traffic, road works, drunks....
Paul Bennett I can't believe it. Some months ago the clock and chimes were stopped and light turned off for work on mobile phone masts. After many emails of complaint these were restored. We love the clock and bells restore them immediately.
Email from Catriona Tulloch Scott [3.9.14]: Please turn the St Stephen Street Church bells back on.
I sleep lightly and badly, and I depend on the bells to tell me that time is moving on, and soon it will be time to get going and get up!
I have lived in St Stephen Street for eight years and love the sound of the bells. I really missed them when they were ‘off’ for a period earlier this year (2014).
I am disturbed and distressed that so few complaints (the BBC reported four complaints) could have led to the bells being turned off. St Vincent Street residents? In million-plus-pound penthouses perhaps? Advise them to move, or to buy effective earplugs!
Email from Ian Shaw [4.9.14]: You may be interested in the report below given the recent outcry about the silencing of St Stephen's clock chimes after complaints by 3 people: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-mid-wales-26724105
[FOR THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ARGUMENT, READ 'CACOPHONOUS CAPITAL', BREAKING NEWS, 3.9.14. SEE ALSO LETTERS, 3.9.14.]