The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with the complainant’s planning application. This is because the complainant had the right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mrs X, has complained about how the Council dealt with her planning application. She says the Council took too long to determine the application and it failed to properly communicate with her. Mrs X also disagreed with the changes the case officer said she should make to the plans for the development.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a government minister. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(b)) The Planning Inspector acts on behalf of the responsible Government minister. The Planning Inspector considers appeals about: delay – usually over eight weeks – by an authority in deciding an application for planning permission a decision to refuse planning permission conditions placed on planning permission a planning enforcement notice.
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mrs X could have appealed to the Planning Inspector after eight weeks if she was unhappy with how long the Council was taking to determine her application. The Ombudsman will not usually investigate when someone had a right to appeal to the Planning Inspector, even if the appeal would not address all the issues complained about.
The plans for the development were amended on a few occasions before planning permission was granted. If Mrs X did not agree with the changes suggested by the case officer, she could have chosen not to amend the plans and appealed to the Planning Inspector if planning permission was then refused.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it would have been reasonable for her to have used her right of appeal to the Planning Inspector.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman