Audie Alexander Dennis and Georgeta Andrei vs Head Start Day Nursery Ltd and The Childcare Corporation Ltd – High Court of Justice – [2024] EWHC 1248 (Admin) – Case Summary

Relevant for:

Environmental law practitioners, local government lawyers, property dispute lawyers

This case concerned an appeal by Audie Alexander Dennis and Georgeta Andrei against a decision of the District Judge who found the defendants, Head Start Day Nursery Ltd and The Childcare Corporation Ltd, not guilty of statutory nuisance due to noise.

TLDR:

• Appeal against District Judge's decision on statutory nuisance dismissed.
• Noise from nursery found not to meet the threshold for statutory nuisance.
• District Judge's application of the 'threshold test' was correct.
• Prosecutors' evidence found to be exaggerated and not credible.
• Legal principles of private nuisance and statutory nuisance reviewed.

The case involved Audie Alexander Dennis and Georgeta Andrei, the landlord and tenant of a property adjacent to a nursery operated by Head Start Day Nursery Ltd and The Childcare Corporation Ltd. The prosecutors claimed that noise from the nursery amounted to a statutory nuisance. The District Judge found the noise did not meet the threshold for statutory nuisance, a decision which the prosecutors appealed.

The High Court reviewed the District Judge's application of the 'threshold test' for determining statutory nuisance. The District Judge had relied on the evidence of an Environmental Health Officer and other experts, who found the noise levels to be low and not substantial enough to constitute a nuisance. The prosecutors' evidence was found to be exaggerated and inconsistent with objective data.

The High Court affirmed that the District Judge correctly applied the threshold test, which requires that the interference must be substantial and judged by the standards of an ordinary person. The evidence supported the conclusion that the noise did not exceed this threshold. The prosecutors' behavior and sensitivity to noise were also considered, with the court finding their reactions to be exaggerated and not representative of an average person.

The High Court also addressed questions regarding the independence and credibility of the prosecutors' witnesses. The District Judge had found these witnesses to be not independent and their evidence inconsistent with objective data. The High Court upheld these findings, noting that the witnesses were closely associated with the prosecutors and their evidence was not credible.

In conclusion, the High Court dismissed the appeal, affirming the District Judge's decision that the noise from the nursery did not constitute a statutory nuisance.

Legal representatives: Gordon Wignall (instructed by Keoghs LLP) for the Appellants. Alison Pryor (instructed by Bdb Pitmans Llp) for the Respondents.

Judicial Panel: The Honourable Mr Justice Turner

Case Citation Reference: [2024] EWHC 1248 (Admin)