People on lowest incomes hit hardest by noise, new research finds

Lower earners are more likely to report being regularly disturbed by noise, according to a new report, which states that urgent action is needed to close health inequality gaps in England and Wales.

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) has today published a major new report, Sound Thinking, warning that noise pollution remains a significant but often overlooked threat to public health and wellbeing, with nearly a quarter of people saying they are regularly disturbed by noise and many believing the problem is getting worse.

The report combines analysis of local authority noise complaint data with new Ipsos polling of more than 2,100 adults aged 16-75 in England and Wales. It highlights the health impacts of environmental noise, identifies emerging sources of noise nuisance and sets out a series of policy recommendations aimed at improving how noise complaints are recorded, monitored and addressed.

One of the key findings from the Ipsos polling is that lower-income households are significantly more likely to be affected by noise (i.e. reported being either very or fairly often disturbed by noise), which the CIEH report suggests is a health inequalities issue.

Survey respondents were asked how frequently they have been disturbed by noise in the areas where they live over the past two years. The research found that 29% of respondents with household incomes of under £20,000 reported being frequently disturbed by noise (selecting “very” or “fairly” often), compared with 19% of those earning more than £55,000. This suggests that people living in less affluent communities may face greater exposure to noise pollution while having fewer options available to mitigate its impacts.

CIEH believes that the findings also raise concerns that communities across England and Wales may be experiencing a "postcode lottery" in how noise complaints are recorded and managed, making it difficult to build a clear national picture of noise pollution and its impacts.

The report comes amid growing recognition of noise as a public health issue. The Government has previously acknowledged that noise is second only to poor air quality as an environmental cause of ill health in Europe, with links to cardiovascular disease, sleep disturbance, inability to concentrate and wider impacts on mental wellbeing.

According to the Ipsos research commissioned by CIEH:

• 23% of respondents (adults aged 16-75 in England and Wales) said they had been disturbed by noise very or fairly often over the past two years.
• 29% said that noise levels where they live had increased during that period.
• Lower-income households are disproportionately affected, with 29% of people earning under £20,000 reporting regular disturbance from noise (selecting “very” or “fairly” often), compared with 19% of those earning £55,000 or more.
• 57% of respondents had experienced some form of neighbour or neighbourhood noise, including noise from animals, neighbours and social gatherings.
• 56% had experienced at least one form of transport-related noise, including road, rail and aircraft noise.
• The most-selected noise disturbances were noise from animals such as barking dogs (38%), road traffic (36%), neighbours in a different building (36%), parties or social gatherings (30%) and emergency vehicle sirens (28%).

The report’s authors believe there is strong public support for making noise complaints easier to report and track. The survey asked respondents what, if anything, would make the reporting process easier for them if they wanted to report noise to their local council. Nearly one-third (32%) of respondents selected “ability to report the noise online” from the options presented, 28% would want “greater confidence that councils would take action”. Overall, 59% of adults aged 16-75 surveyed selected answers relating to improving the flexibility and accessibility of reporting systems.

Among the report's key recommendations are calls for:

• Nationally consistent coding categories for noise complaints across England and Wales.
• A mechanism for councils to record and monitor emerging sources of noise as they develop.
• Guidance for councils undergoing Local Government Reorganisation to ensure consistent reporting systems.
• Future national noise reduction plans to include targets for reducing complaints from specific noise sources.
• A review of resources available to environmental health services dealing with noise and nuisance complaints.
• Renewed action on recommendations made by the House of Lords' 2023 report on neglected pollutants.
• Research into whether differing levels of environmental health provision are creating inequalities in service outcomes.
• Consideration of noise as an ‘Environmental Factor’ under the new Health Inequalities Duty introduced through the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026.
• Wider adoption of digital reporting tools and mobile applications to improve access to noise complaint services and help councils respond more efficiently.

The report concludes that reducing noise harm will require action on prevention, planning, public health and environmental health, supported by better data and stronger national coordination.

Fran McCloskey, CIEH Chief Executive Officer, said:

“Environmental noise causes serious harms to people’s health, wellbeing and quality of life. It affects millions of people across England and Wales and remains one of the most significant, yet often overlooked, environmental challenges facing our communities. Reducing noise-related harm must be a public health priority.

“At first glance the picture appears encouraging. Recorded noise complaints have fallen. However, the evidence in this report suggests that complaint numbers alone do not provide a complete picture of noise harm. Variations in recording practices, differences in reporting behaviour and public polling all indicate the need for a more consistent and robust understanding of how noise affects people’s lives and health. Fewer complaints does not necessarily mean less harm.

“What this report highlights is the need for better evidence to support better action. While complaint data tells us about demand reaching local authority services, it does not fully capture the extent of people’s experiences of noise or its wider impacts on health and wellbeing. To reduce noise-related harm effectively, we must improve how we understand, record and monitor it.”

Stephen Turner, noise specialist and CIEH Vice President, said:

"With CIEH focusing on securing much more comprehensive data than in previous years, the dataset produced by this survey of noise complaints is extremely valuable. Adding specific questions on certain relatively new noise sources has further enhanced its value.

“However, monitoring noise complaints alone provides an incomplete picture about the adverse effects of noise, as we know some people choose not to complain even if they are highly annoyed, whilst, as Environmental Health Practitioners are only too well aware, the opposite can be true.

“What the number of complaints does tell us about is the workload on Environmental Health departments in dealing with this issue. One of the next challenges for CIEH is to explore how complaint recording could be standardised and then reported more efficiently, covering both existing and emerging sources of noise."

Paul Shields, President of the Institute of Acoustics (IoA), said:

“The Institute of Acoustics welcomes CIEH’s call for a more consistent approach to the reporting of noise complaint data, recognising that better data, as well as technical expertise and properly resourced environmental health services are essential for the effective management of noise and protecting public health and wellbeing in the longer term from what has been recognised to be a neglected pollutant.”

Gloria Elliott OBE, Chief Executive, Noise Abatement Society, said:

"The Noise Abatement Society welcomes the new CIEH report "Sound Thinking" which recognises a priority need for better reporting, data collection and understanding around the real-life effects of intrusive noise on communities."

John Stewart, Chair of the UK Noise Association, said:

"This important report lays out practical ways in which noise can be tackled much more effectively."

Ellie Savage, Noise Action Week Coordinator and the Institution of Environmental Sciences (IES) Policy Lead, said:

“Sound Thinking provides a timely and much-needed look at how environmental noise is recorded and tackled by Environmental Health teams and sets out a clear case for modernising our approach.

“As the report makes clear, at present we have a fragmented and incomplete picture of noise complaints across local authorities, limiting our ability to understand trends, identify emerging sources and make the case for the resources needed to tackle noise effectively. Crucially, fewer recorded complaints do not necessarily mean less noise harm. We need better and more consistent data, including consistent national coding, to understand the true scale of the problem and support better action.

“Most importantly, Sound Thinking reinforces the need for treating noise not simply as a nuisance, but as an environmental and public health issue that needs a more strategic, evidence-based response."

The full CIEH Sound Thinking report can be viewed at: https://www.cieh.org/soundthinking