Neighbours ruining our road.

Its tricky. I'm sorry you cannot enjoy your garden.
Some families are just plain noisy! Adults shouting angrily all the time is not a good sign- but could be a sign that the family is struggling and if one of the children is having regular meltdowns and has special needs (some children with special needs such as autism get very distressed- which can be very distressing and limiting also for the rest of the family) the family might benefit from support. Its very difficult to get support such as short breaks via for instance a specialist club or respite care. In my experience, families with disabled children with behaviour that challenges, do need to be at crisis point to start getting considered for support, and others concerns for a family might help get that support.

Underclass is a sociological term.
Where Biglouis lived, it was probably wise to say nothing..
I think I would contact social services, but only if there was no chance of the neighbours finding out it was me.

Definitely report them to social services/NSPCC. They will (hopefully) check that the children are safe at least.

Just because there is no evidence of physical abuse it doesn't doesn't mean a child is not being abused. There are verbal, emotional and mental abuse which are just as damaging and if you think this is happening then you might want to phone a helpline such as Childline or NSPCC. You can do this in an informal manner and anonymously.

Be very careful about getting in touch with local authorities and making any formal complaint that is recorded. If you do and you decide to sell you are obliged by law to mention any neighbour disputes on the home report. That means that you'll not be able to sell your house. I had issues with neighbours and was warned about this. So I just had to put up and shut up. Luckily they moved. I'm in Scotland, not sure what the law is elsewhere.

Do we have the same neighbours ??? We call ours mary Poppins as when she is outside the home its "come along children we are off on a great adventure . Spit Spot " inside the house its a totally different matter . Screaming , shouting , swearing , banging , crashing . I have spoken to her but she says the children are all autistic and this is the only way she can communicate and they only respond when she loses her temper . I did consider speaking to social service but once that genie is out the bottle its very hard to come back from . If I was to hear actual abuse I would have no choice . They are defiantly being mentally abused so its a hard call .

If you go onto mumsnet complaining about noisy neighbours every other poster will suggest noise cancellation headphones or earplugs. Or both. So not such an "off the wall" suggestion. It may not be a solution but it is a coping mechanism.

I have upstairs neighbours, who are lovely in every way, but one of their 3 children has some issues and melts down all the time, I'm working from home and invested in some headphones, I listen to music all day now the school holidays are upon us. I try and be graceful most of the time, but it's very hard work and stressful trying to ignore thumps and screaming for half an hour at a time. I can only hope that they'll move or the affected child grows up a bit. It is hard for everyone involved.

You can buy and fit noise insulating panels in the rooms nearest the offending family but it doesn't help with the noise in the garden. I've concluded that " Hell is other people" and if you have good neighbours, which we have, they are to be cherished! We did have a family from Hell at the back of our garden and the stress took years off our lives; they moved thank God and I hope that will be the outcome for you too.

PS It seems better for this to be investigated and found not to be abuse than for it not to be investigated when it actually is abuse.

I think I’d report this. It could be emotional abuse, which is serious, plus physical abuse can’t be ruled out. OP, you could Google ‘child protection and children at risk’ or ‘child safeguarding’ plus the name of your local council. Or the NSPCC.

It sounds dreadful and I do sympathise with you.

People who like to pretend that social class no longer exists in this country are being very naive! Rather than responding to the subject of the posting they de-contextualise one word or phrase and descend to trolling and virtue signalling. They have my pity and compassion for their inability to follow a topic.

BigLouis, many grans are unable to be objective about social class. I am not one of those. Keep it coming BigLouis. Down with twee!

Please don't automatically think that the father has a bad temper. My SiL could be perceived that way if you didn't know their circumstances. Two of my grandsons have sensory processing disorders and ADHD. When they are having meltdowns he needs to raise his voice to be heard over the screaming and distress.
When they moved into their current house my DD made sure that all her neighbours within earshot were aware that there would be noise.
They are good parents.
Unless you are really familiar with the family next door, please don't judge.

Well Liynwel1 we too have that problem from three neighbours.
Next door are always arguing,and police call at least once a week.
Up four doors a single mother and child moved in and she has allsorts visiting at all housr,fighting on the front,they dont use the back garden for whatever reason.
Yesterday the police were called by her herself and off one male was taken,again.
Then in front of that house is a family who moved in about 12 months ago and all we hear is a child constantly screaching,they have social workers visit but nothing changes.
Who needs soaps when you live around here.
I could get irritated very easily but then that would start to affect my life.
Ironically as i am typing this next door is off again.
Try as best as you can to ignore or be entertained,which works for me and my nerves.

I would say that emotional abuse, shouting etc can be as damaging as physical. The children scream, partially at least, because they are screamed at. This is normal for them. All this is no help to you at the moment though. You could move of course. You could contact social services anonymously. You could invest in noise cancelling headphones to see if they would help. The children will grow up and hopefully the noise will abate. Only you know what course if action is right for you.

What the heck are the kids doing out at 06:00?
Tbh, I'm absolutely surprised not one of the neighbours has complained.
Even builders are not allowed to start that early!!!

A friend who lives further down my road had similar issues with her next door neighbour.
She reported it, the family was assessed as "not coping" and a support system was put in place. Everyone was happier.
Do ring and tell someone these poor children, and probably their parents, are in need of help.

I agree with others on here ... not all may I add ... sensible to keep notes & report them ... you are thinking of the children's well being ... even if not physical can be mentally abused through constant shouting ... also no one need know it was you ... if you do don't even tell any of the neighbours you have reported them , other others may well report them aswell

This is clearly very distressing for you. I can imagine the stress you are under! However as others have said schools and nurseries do not always pick up on issues . This family may already be known to SS , however if you have concerns ring them anonymously. So many cases of child neglect/ cruelty go under the radar.

'I’m sure there’s nothing physical going on as it would be picked up at play school/school. '

You know that for a fact do you? If you have the slightest suspicion then you must report this matter to your local Social Services.

If you're worried about a child or young person, you can contact the NSPCC helpline for support and advice for free - call on 0808 800 5000 - and please do.

Children with additional needs are very vulnerable to emotional abuse.

So sorry to hear this, but it's a total lottery as regards neighbours, as we know to our cost. We ended up selling our holiday apartment on the Algarve about 3 years ago, when nightmare neighbours moved in directly above us, and made our life a total misery. So yes, you may be well advised to move, but be aware that neighbours like that can devalue all properties in the immediate area. Also, things have to get pretty bad before the Authorities are likely to intervene, and such intervention can take ages.

Deeper thinking posters

Obviously not me then.

Agree biglouis. When I'm exam marking, I put white noise on my laptop and put my headphones on. I do it to drown out general 'household' noise, because anything can interrupt my concentration (an age related issue I think). I've now come to associate examining with white noise and need it on even when no one is home!