Early to rise.

[Adey65]

I got my five chickens early last summer. They were rising around 7 o'clock at the time due to them being in a smaller coop that let in only small amounts of light. Since then, I have converted an 8x5 shed with two windows, and at the moment they're getting up at six, and sometimes slightly earlier. As I work for myself at home, six is fine as it means my work is completed around two, then I have the rest of the day to myself.

I am concerned that they will be getting up even earlier pretty soon now that the clocks have gone forward. Likely around five. I do have an automatic door to be set for the appropriate time. Once they're out of the coop, they enter a 4x2 meter run, after which when released free range all day. As I said, I don't mind getting up at six, but five may be stretching it a bit. I'm more concerned about the neighbors rather than myself. Although they are fantastic, hearing chickens at five in the morning might be pushing the boundaries.

I was thinking of putting up some shutters on the shed at night to keep it dark until around six. I won't leave it any later than that. What I want to know is would this cause any distress to my birds?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It wouldn't be undue stress to shutter.
Chickens are active from dawn to dusk regardless of what the clock says. It is all about day length which means they become active earlier each day and stay out later every day this time of year.
They also have an internal clock so sometimes roosters will still crow in black out housing at dawn. Hens' behavior however, regarding egg laying is based on the length of day light and whether it is increasing or decreasing. You can affect that with both blacking out windows or adding artificial light.