The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with a planning application or the pre-application advice it provided to the complainant. This is because the complainant had the right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
The complaint
Mr X has complained on behalf of Mr Y about the Council’s decision to refuse his planning application. Mr X says the decision to refuse planning permission contradicts the Council’s pre-application advice and Mr Y has suffered financial losses as a result.
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 Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr Y could have appealed to the Planning Inspector if he disagreed with the Council’s decision to refuse planning permission. The Ombudsman will not usually investigate when someone had a right to appeal to the Planning Inspector, even if the appeal would not have addressed all the issues complained about.
Mr X has complained about the pre-application advice Mr Y received from the Council and says this contradicts its decision to refuse his planning application.
Many councils offer a range of pre-application planning services. Councils should act in good faith when providing pre-application advice. However, pre-application advice does not bind the council and councils cannot be expected to fully assess applications at the pre-application stage. Any planning application submitted will be determined on its own merits.
In this case, I consider it clear the Council’s pre-application advice was given on a without prejudice basis and there was never any guarantee the Council would approve Mr Y’s application. Any time and expense Mr Y spent preparing the application was at his own risk.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because it would have been reasonable for him to use his right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman