regarding your article last week about party-goers upsetting villagers

I live in one of the houses in Lympstone which backs onto Candy’s Field and the youth club.

During the first summer that we have been here, we have been plagued by drunken youths hanging around the picnic area (which is at the bottom of my very small garden), as well as the loud music that is blasted out at unsociable times of the night when the youth club or village hall has been hired out for a function.

The situation was made even worse when the parish council went ahead and put a cover over the said picnic area, making it possible for those youths to drink and mess around in all weathers.

I have recently complained about being kept awake till past one o’clock on a Sunday morning, due to one of these functions at the youth club, but was fobbed off.

Why should we “put up with the noise”, as said by Councillor David Atkins? We were not the ones who planned or built these buildings. That was between the parish council and the contractors/housing association.

The houses that back onto the youth club and covered picnic area are for those of us who are on low income.

What gives Councillor Atkins the right to say “we have got to put up with it”.

Just because we are on low income does not mean we have lost our right to respect and a decent night’s sleep.

The parish council, having seen the situation at Candy’s Field, should have modified the plans for the said area (the cover over the picnic area and the allowed hours for functions etc) instead of burying their heads in the sand and hoping we would just sit back and take it.

I wonder how things would be if Mr Atkins lived in one of these houses?

Elizabeth Reynolds

(via email).