Guidance on preparing Codes of Practice for minimising noise in England
- Contents
- About this guidance
- Introduction
- Process
- Appendix A: List of approved Codes of Practice
- Appendix B: What is sustainable development?
- Appendix C: The consultation criteria
Introduction
1. Codes of Practice (Codes) are now widely employed in many areas of environmental policy. Codes concerned with minimising noise should provide appropriate guidance for both those whose activities cause noise and those who have the responsibility for regulating it.
2. Codes for approval under Section 71 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 should be submitted as follows:
- codes to cover England only should be submitted to the Secretary of State at Defra;
- codes to cover Wales only to Ministers at the Welsh Assembly;
- codes to cover Northern Ireland only to the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland
- codes to cover Scotland only to Scottish Ministers; and
- codes to cover the whole of the UK should be submitted to each of the above.
3. Codes approved by the Secretary of State have statutory recognition, but they do not have the force of regulation and infringement does not constitute an offence. Nevertheless, non-compliance will usually be taken into account in any enforcement proceedings, and it is important therefore that they are prepared in a manner which renders them fit for this purpose.
4. This document provides guidance for those preparing or otherwise contributing to codes for submission to the Secretary of State. It sets out considerations which should be taken into account and recommends the procedures which should be followed if the resulting code is to be submitted for approval and command the confidence of the Courts and others applying it. The processes recommended are designed so that codes approved under section 71 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974:
- assist in minimising noise disturbance;
- are prepared in such a way that provides confidence in them as a reasonable indication of current good practice;
- are practical, reasonable and appropriate to the circumstances; and
- demonstrate that all relevant interests have been taken into account.
Page last modified:
19 May 2005
Page published: 2 September 2002