Residential noise insulation scheme

We have produced a booklet setting out details of the scheme, which has been sent to all properties in the affected area.

We know that noise from Gatwick Airport and the aircraft using it is one of the biggest concerns for people who live nearby. We am also in no doubt that as the airport grows, we have a responsibility to make sure that the impacts of that growth are carefully managed. We want to do all we reasonably can to mitigate the impact of airport-related noise.

This section of our webpage introduces a proposed scheme to fund or contribute towards the cost of providing noise insulation in the homes of those most affected by noise from the airport. It will bring benefits to nearly 1,000 properties. We want to take your views into account before the scheme is finalised and launched next year. The proposed scheme document is available here in the form of a pdf document, and includes a feedback form for you to use. The associated maps are also available here as separate pdf documents for you to view.

This scheme has its roots in our sustainable Development Strategy, which was published in 2000 following extensive consultation with our business partners and local communities. The strategy set out our proposals to achieve a throughput of around 40 million passengers a year and encompasses 143 commitments to mitigate the impact of that growth. Thirty-three million passengers travelled through Gatwick in 2005/2006 and we expect to achieve 40 million passengers a year by 2015. At the time of writing we are working together with our local authority stakeholders on a revision of the commitments to bring them up to date.

One of our key commitments is to launch a noise insulation scheme for local people. Originally we planned to do this in the first year of our strategy. However, the scheme was delayed as it was important to incorporate developments in the wider aviation field such as the 2003 White Paper ‘The Future of Air Transport’, and the Department for Transport’s (DfT) 2006 decision paper ‘Night Flying Restriction at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted Airports’.

We are seeking views on this proposed scheme from the DfT, the Gatwick Airport Consultative Committee, local authorities, local MPs, local interest groups and residents. We would encourage you to respond by 3rd March 2007, follow link for details on how to respond.

Scheme proposal: The Gatwick Noise Insulation Scheme for Homes (2,661KB PDF)

Higher resolution versions of the maps featured in the scheme proposal are available to view below:

Map Figure 1 - Proposed Scheme Contours (8,036KB PDF)
Map Figure 2 - Ground Noise Contour Options (3,826KB PDF)