Toddler group used by Jamie Oliver's children faces the axe

Last updated at 11:11 01 February 2007


A mother and baby singing class which is popular with celebrities and their children could be axed after neighbours complained the mothers were belting out their nursery rhymes too loudly.

People living near the Triyoga Centre in Primrose Hill - where Sadie Frost, Jools Oliver and artist Sam Taylor-Wood take their children - have objected to drumming and chanting.

The centre is now being taken to court by Camden council over the alleged breach of noise restrictions.

Nadia Narin, who runs the weekly Mum & Me yoga and baby movement class as well as a pregnancy yoga group, said: "Sadie, Jools and Sam have contacted me to say they think it is a great shame the classes could be forced to shut.

"They said they would write letters and emails in our support. Sadie came here with her children, Iris and Rudy; Jools with Poppy and Daisy; and Sam used to come with her baby daughter Jessie.

"Luella Bartley, the designer, also brought her two boys, Kip and Stevie, here. They loved coming. All the mums and babies do. The singing keeps the babies calm and happy.

"How can anyone object? How can the sound of mums and babies singing and a bit of Bob Marley compare to the noise of traffic and building work we get nearby?" Ms Narin says the mothers sing nursery rhymes without musical accompaniment, followed by a gentle dance to a song.

"Soon the babies are asleep. Would the people who complain prefer to hear screaming babies instead?" she asked.

Neighbours complained the centre was in breach of its original planning conditions which stated that any music played inside should not be heard from outside.

Council inspectors said they could quite clearly hear nursery rhymes and the Marley record. The council issued an enforcement notice against the centre, which now has a month to comply before it is taken to court under threat of eviction.

A Camden spokeswoman said: "Nursery rhymes and a Bob Marley song could be clearly heard. We warned the owners and nothing has changed, so our next step is to take them to court."

Shipping arbitrator Mark Hamsher, whose apartment overlooks the centre, said: "Yoga is supposed to be quiet, but what you hear is drumming, chanting, music and singing all day. It's not just about a few nursery rhymes."

Rachel Morgan, 32, a recruitment consultant who attends the £11 an hour classes with her three-month-old daughter Nell, said: "It's not massively loud and it would be a shame if the centre had to close because of this."

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