The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about delays in the Council’s planning enforcement investigation. This is because it is too late.
The complaint
Mrs X complained the Council delayed acting on her report of a planning breach. She said the Council’s financial remedy is an insult.
Mrs X said her neighbour’s development is unsightly, has affected her privacy, and has devalued her property.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered the information and documents provided by Mrs X and the Council. I spoke to Mrs X about her complaint. Mrs X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on an earlier draft of this statement. I considered all comments received before I reached a final decision.
What I found
What happened In May 2022, Mrs X told the Council her neighbour had breached their planning permission. The Council had already started a planning enforcement investigation in 2021 after another neighbour complained.
In May 2025, Mrs X complained to the Ombudsman. We told Mrs X she had to complain to the Council first, which she then did.
The Council accepted it was at fault, apologised, and offered Mrs X £250.
Finding
As I have set out above, we cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons.
Mrs X knew about the neighbour’s planning breach from at least 2021, and reported it to the Council in 2022. She complained to us in May 2025, three years later.
I have considered Mrs X’s reasons for not complaining to us earlier. I find reasonable opportunities existed for Mrs X to have complained to us earlier than May 2025. I am not persuaded there are good reasons to exercise our discretion. For this reason, I have not investigated this complaint.
Decision I have not investigated this complaint because it is too late.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman