A WIDOWED mother-of-six is pursuing legal action after her family was served with a noise abatement notice for playing Lambeg drums.
Kelley Sterritt was stunned when council officials hand-delivered the order to their home in Markethill, Co Armagh.
It warns they could face a £5,000 fine if they breach the notice from Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council.
Mrs Sterrit (44), whose family has a long tradition of playing Lambeg drums, accused the council of "attacking" their culture.
Her husband Richard, who died in 2016 aged 52, passed on to his children the tradition of playing the drums in the garden shed, just as his father Ernie had done with him at the same Forest View property.
The abatement notice restricts playing the drums to within specified hours for no longer than 30 minutes on two days each week, and that "no more than one" drum can be played at any one time. No restrictions apply on the Twelfth or July 13.
Mrs Sterritt has vowed to defy the order, and her solicitor is preparing action seeking to have it overturned.
"I strongly believe this is an attack on my culture and an attack on my family which has been playing Lambeg drums at this address for three generations," she told the Belfast Telegraph.
A neighbour told the Ulster Gazette the boys' drums are "never played for a duration or at a time which could be considered anti-social".
A council spokeswoman said: "Councils have a statutory duty to investigate noise complaints and if a nuisance is established the council is obliged to serve an abatement notice.
"Anyone served with an abatement notice by council has the right to appeal to the magistrates court."
