Noise complaints about children in playgrounds should be ignored: report

A child swings in a playground on Sunday, June 16, 2024, in Irvington, N.J. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

The sound of children frolicking in playgrounds shouldn’t be a valid reason for noise complaints, a new report from Amsterdam’s sports advisory council says. Such complaints have led to playground equipment being replaced or removed, or playgrounds themselves being relocated or closed.

“Certainly in an urban environment such as Amsterdam, the sound of children playing is a natural, desirable and unavoidable part of daily life,” a translation of the report from Sports Council Amsterdam said. “When a term like ‘noise pollution’ is used for playgrounds, a negative connotation is given to something that should be encouraged: children who can play outside without a care in the world.”

The council argues that bylaws in the Netherlands capital need to be changed so that noise from children in official playgrounds during regular hours can no longer be considered a nuisance.

“Every child has the right to play outside, as laid down in Article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” the report states, referring to an international human rights treaty that has been ratified by every United Nations member, except the U.S. “Playing outside is not only essential for children’s physical health, but also for developing cognitive and social skills.”

Canada’s fun police

Complaints from cranky neighbours have also impacted outdoor play for Canadian kids.

After noise complaints, a popular roller slide was removed from a Vancouver playground in 2023 to the dismay of parents and children.

In 2018, a Calgary family reported that neighbours installed an alarm that went off when their kids made noise in the yard. In 2016, a Coquitlam, B.C., mother said she received a bylaw warning that her three children were playing too loudly outside.

Bylaw officers in Ottawa have also cracked down on roadside basketball and hockey nets, and in November a Markham, Ont. man reluctantly agreed to tear down his backyard rink following a years-long dispute with local officials and his neighbours.