Tesco in Marlborough has introduced a Quiet Hour’ every Wednesday from 2-3pm. Nicola Barker, a customer who finds noise physically painful, protested and Matt Jones, the branch manager, listened to her protests and decided to act. ‘We wanted to help our customers and make shopping easier for them,’ he said. Not only piped music but tannoy announcements and bright lights are muted during this weekly hour of peace. Since introducing the Quiet Hour, staff in Marlborough have noticed ‘many more customers benefitting from the less intense experience.’ There is as yet no plan by Tesco to expand Quiet Hours nationally, however. There should be so we need to keep writing to Tesco’s CEO Dave Lewis dave.lewis@uk.tesco.com

Meanwhile the Co-op has been running similar  ‘autism awareness hours’ at some of their branches across the country and will be ‘running more going forward.’ Email Steve Murrells the CEO to encourage him with these awareness hours at steve.murrells@co-operative.coop

A person unable to walk is clearly and visibly disabled. Someone who is blind is equally clearly  disabled. But people afflicted by whole range of invisible  disabilities – from tinnitus to GAD (general anxiety disorder), from misophonia and dystonia to autism, from presbycusis  to hyperacusis to ME – often do not appear disabled. Yet in  important ways they are. For such people piped music is no mere irritant but a crippling torment. This applies also to those with general hearing problems (one in six of the population, according to Action on Hearing Loss). All these people in effect suffer from an Invisible Disability. And almost nothing is being done for them.  Recent moves to provide the odd Quiet Hour by ASDA and Morrisons are still little more than tokenism. Many organisations,  from banks to hospitals to restaurants, are arguably breaking existing law.

According to the Department for Work and Pensions, the Equality Act of 2010 “requires service providers to make a reasonable adjustment for disabled people to make sure that they are not places at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled people. This may include such actions are accommodating requests for communications to be conducted in a particular format. A failure by a service provider to make reasonable adjustment for a disabled person could amount to direct disability discrimination under the Act. (My italics.) What is ‘reasonable’ will vary from one situation to another because of factors such as the practicality of making the adjustment, the cost of the adjustment and the resources available to different providers.”

As the cost of adjusting – i.e. turning off – piped music is almost nil, and it is very easy, there seems no valid reason why all organisations should not be expected to turn off their piped music when requested to do so. Those who fail to do so are guilty of discrimination.

The DWP adds: “If a person feels they have been discriminated against, the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) provides free bespoke advice and in depth support to individuals with discrimination concerns.” The EASS can be contacted: easeass@mailgb.custhelp.com or Freephone 0808 800 0082  or FREEPOST EASS HELPLINE FPN 6521

The DWP concludes: “The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has a monitoring and enforcement role in relation to the Equality Act 2010. It has a power to enforce a breach of any of the Act’s provisions, including the disability discrimination provisions, and to challenge organisations where required.”

Any individuals who fall into one of the ‘invisibly disabled’ categories ought to challenge  places with piped music, utilising this and other  information. Do tell Pipedown of your experiences – setbacks as well as victories – so that we can collate information and approach the Department of Health and the Noise Team at DEFRA  with our findings.

(Many thanks to Anne Brown who winkled out this information and suggested the phrase.)

Piped music is a global problem but one best dealt with nationally, even locally. Each country has specific problems.

Katie, who lives in Toronto, plans to start a Canadian branch of Pipedown. If you live in Canada – or even just across the border in the USA – do contact her at caitlinkingston@gmail.com

It is very early days yet but there should be a Pipedown Canada website up soon.

Stevan Hezseltine, one of our most eloquent and energetic members, is starting  a local group around Carshalton Beeches and north Surrey. He welcomes supporters. If interested, ring him on 020 8642 6388. (He prefers lively conversation on the phone to the deadness of email.)  Whatever happens at his meetings, they are most unlikely to be dull!

Morrisons, the supermarket chain, is introducing a Quiet Hour every Saturday morning. Its 439 UK stores will turn off their piped music, dim lights, avoid using the tannoy and turn down check-out beeps  from 09:00 to 10:00. Morrisons is the first major supermarket chain to roll out the scheme to all stores nationwide.

The National Autistic Society called it a ‘step in the right direction’. It is indeed only a step because, although Morrison’s initiative is welcome, one hour per week of quiet shopping is not nearly enough! Nor are the estimated nearly 700,000 people (1% of the nation) with autism the only ones who find piped music deeply upsetting. The 15% of the population with hearing problems – which can include everything from tinnitus, presbycusis and misphonia to moderate deafness – also detest piped music. So of course do many people with perfect hearing.

Other chains are considering following suit. Asda said a number of its supermarkets across the country already worked with local groups to run quiet hours on a regular basis. It added it was working with specialist charity groups to ensure its stores were inclusive for all.

Tesco said it was not planning on rolling out the initiative nationwide, but store managers were welcome to introduce it if they felt it appropriate – as one store in Alloa, Clackmannanshire, did last year. And Sainsbury’s said more than 600 of its stores took part in the National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour in October last year and will be doing so again this year. In three of its Liverpool-based stores, where staff have received training, parents can request a number of store modifications when they begin their shopping trip, it added.

All such moves should be applauded and the chains concerned urged to extend their Quiet Hours greatly. Write to David Potts, CEO of Morrisons, congratulating him and urging him to extend the scheme to other days/times of the week.  david.potts-ceo@morrisonsplc.co.uk

A recurrent complaint about otherwise excellent television documentaries is their intrusive, often inappropriate music. (For some reason this is particularly bad on wildlife programmes but it mars many other documentaries too). For years the relevant authorities, especially at the BBC, have shrugged off complaints with bland or irrelevant comments (such as suggesting you use subtitles), leaving frustrated viewers having either to mute the programme or to turn it off .

NB All music, along with other sounds including ‘natural’ noises, is dubbed in later. 

Now, news arrives that the Red Button on the remote control can be used to mute the commentary. If it can be used to mute commentaries, it can surely be used to mute music too, something Pipedown has long urged. While this may require further adjustments, it cannot be technically impossible.

Yet the BBC does not want to know! Its management prefers to ignore the fact that many of its viewers are likely to be over 50, and thus annoyed by piped music of any sort. 

Complain via the BBC website bbc_complaints_website@bbc.co.uk”  

Quiet Corners, which lists muzak-free pubs, hotels, restaurants, shops etc has been rejigged by our indefatigable hon webmaster Chris Chinnery. It is now possible to type in your location and see what tranquil places have been suggested (by members) within 10, 25 or 50 miles. At present this revamp is not quite complete but it soon will be. Ultimately it should be possible also to download an app to your mobile. Seehttps://quietcorners.org.uk

The Coop supermarket chain has won the wooden spoon of being voted the worst  offender for piped music. Although the chain is not everyone’s choice of shop, it is often the only place that the most vulnerable in society – those who cannot drive for whatever reason, for example – find they have to do their shopping. It is also a chain that loudly proclaims its ethical ideals.               So whether or not you shop there regularly, write in protest to its CEO Steve Murrells steve.murrells@co-operative.coop

(NB: Not every branch of the Co-op is controlled by the London HQ. The East Anglia and Midlands branches have some autonomy, so it is wise to check the status of a branch before making a protest.)

The Nationwide Building Society, which until recently prided itself on not  having piped music, is now introducing it, doubtless misled by the mendacious propaganda of the piped music industry. Email  www.nationwide.co.uk/support/contact-us/make-a-complaint or  by post to The Complaints Team, Nationwide Building Society  NW 2020, Swindon SN38 1NW    As the Nationwide is still  converting once pleasant branches to muzac-filled places of torment, it is well worth writing NOW.

All ASDA supermarkets turned off their muzac and reduced other acoustic and visual disturbances to a minimum for an hour last Tuesday to allow people with autism to shop in peace. This is a real advance: a major chain at last recognising the impact excessive noise can have on its customers. ASDA needs to expand the scheme to having well-advertised quiet hours every day of the year, however. Autism sufferers are of course especially vulnerable but they are not the only shoppers harmed by piped music. The 15% of the population with hearing problems are also badly affected, as are people with many other problems, from hyperacusis and tinnitus to ME. It is high time supermarkets woke up to this problem.

Email ASDA’s  CEO  Roger Burnley  roger.burnley@asda.co.uk,to press him to extend the scheme and make it a permanent feature of the chain, not a one-off. sean.clarke@asda.co.uk

Meanwhile, keep protesting to the Co-op which is finally showing signs of listening to its customers. Email the Co-op’s CEO Steve Murrells, perhaps also pointing out how well Aldi and Lidl are doing without any music. steve.murrells@coop.co.uk