Lambeg drumming family determined in legal fight against noise order

Kelley Sterritt, a widowed mother of six from Markethill in Co Armagh, had been served with an order by Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council that restricts the times her sons could play the drums.

She told the News Letter yesterday her boys have now been given the go ahead to practise outside the restrictive times ordered by the council, pending the outcome of a legal challenge.

The first steps in her legal challenge were taken at Armagh Magistrates’ Court on Friday, she said.

Her late husband, Richard, had been internationally renowned for his skill with a Lambeg drum and the family has a history of drumming spanning generations.

“If Richard was here he wouldn’t have stood for it, and the boys are too young, so I have to stand up for them,” she told the News Letter. “I am disappointed I have had to take this legal action but I am determined to fight this.

“The judge instructed both sides to come to an agreement and I remain open to that. But I will not lie down. It is part of our culture.”

A spokesperson for the council, in a statement to this newspaper last month, said: “Anyone served with an abatement notice by council has the right to appeal to the magistrates’ court.”

The case has been adjourned until next month.