A man has been ordered to pay a neighbour £100 compensation after dogs on his property were left to bark throughout the day.

Perry Sutton’s home in Boughton under Blean was visited multiple times by Swale Borough Council (SBC) officers responding to noise complaints.

Upon searching the site, which Mr Sutton says operates as a rescue centre, kennel facilities housing more than 20 dogs at a time were discovered.

The animals were left to bark uncontrollably, with SBC claiming the disruption would start at 6am and often continue into the afternoon.

A noise abatement notice was first handed to the 59-year-old on October 28 last year but officers at the council continued to receive numerous noise complaints - witnessing five breaches.

Mr Sutton was convicted in his absence at Medway Magistrates’ Court on September 8 – though he claims he was not aware of the proceedings.

He was fined £250 and ordered to pay a £100 victim surcharge, £100 compensation to a neighbour, and £800 costs.

Council officers say they will continue to monitor the property and take further action if necessary, with Cllr Richard Palmer - chair of the community committee - saying: “We are very happy with the outcome of this case and now some justice has been served.

“We take noise complaints very seriously and our officers worked very hard to get to this resolution; gathering evidence, conducting interviews and attending the property in the early hours of the morning to witness his transgressions.

“Officers will keep an eye on the property and take any additional steps where necessary.”

When contacted for comment by Faversham News, Mr Sutton revealed he intends to fight the conviction.

“I’m appealing this at the moment because we didn’t know anything about the date of the hearing,” he said.

“We didn’t have a chance to put our defence forward.

“We’re a dog rescue. I fund it myself and unfortunately after lockdown there’s been so many dogs abandoned and we’re always getting asked to take in different dogs.

“The court hasn’t considered the fact we’re in a semi-rural area. There are other neighbours with dogs who also bark – the issue is never at night-time.

“Dogs will bark, it’s only during the day we’ve had these issues and we’ve been here very happily for 23 years without issue before all this.

“There’s one particular neighbour who has caused this and I feel very let down that we’ve not been able to state our case.”