The pastor of a gospel church whose noisy celebration of the Lord drove nearby residents from their homes was today ordered to "turn the volume down".

Chants of "Oh Jesus, I will always love you" accompanied by singing and drumming made life a misery for the neighbours of The Written Word Family Outreach Church in School Road, Hove, East Sussex.

Retired teacher Barbara O'Kelly, of Alpine Road, which backs on to the church, told Brighton Magistrates Court: "On some Sundays it went on from 10.30am to 8pm; with practices on Saturday, it was all weekend."

The church's band practice reached 94.2 decibels, "the sort of level you would expect in a nightclub or loud bar" according to Jim Whitelegg, senior environmental health officer for Brighton and Hove City Council.

He said complaints were first received about the noise three years ago. Pastor Francis Yeboah was served with a Noise Abatement Notice in May 2004 but the £15,000 he had spent on soundproofing his church, which is in an industrial unit and has a corrugated roof, did not block out the noise sufficiently.

Today's prosecution of Pastor Yeboah was to determine whether or not he had breached the Noise Abatement Notice on Thursday, November 9, 2006.

On that night Mr Whitelegg visited an Alpine Road resident to hear the noise for himself. He described hearing "intermittent heavy drumming and amplified singing" as well as guitar and keyboards.

He said: "I could clearly hear singing and chanting, 'Oh Jesus, I will always love you'."

Pastor Yeboah told magistrates that band practices were only held on Saturday mornings but admitted that band members did have keys to access the church, although none recalled doing so on on the evening of November 9.

He said: "On November 9, as I recall, there was nothing going on." The pastor agreed that extra band practices were sometimes held ahead of special services, and that such a service took place a few days after November 9.

The noise continued after this date, the court was told.

When residents phoned the church to complain, their calls went unanswered. Mr Yeboah said: "I honestly thought they'd phone after the service because being the preacher I wouldn't have my mobile on me."

Magistrates found him guilty of breaching the Noise Abatement Notice. Chairman Roy Simmons told him: "This nuisance has gone on for far too long and the neighbours of the church must be protected from this intrusion.

"You must take responsibility for this noise. You must turn the volume down until you are satisfied that the soundproofing is sufficient not to annoy the neighbours."

Pastor Yeboah was fined £400 and ordered to pay £1,200 costs. He was warned his equipment could be seized if the noise continued.

Alpine Street resident Belinda Maloney said: "It's like having a rock band at the bottom of your garden."

Mrs O'Kelly said: "Most weekends we were driven out of our home. We couldn't use our gardens."

Pastor Yeboah's lawyer, Victor Prouse, said: "The magistrate has applied wisdom and common sense. We think the objective now is to work with the neighbours."

He said his client was prosecuted under laws designed to shut down illegal raves.