Oxford City Council (05B14509)

Planning applications                Maladministration causing injustice

30 November 2006

‘Mr and Mrs Oakham’ (not their real names for legal reasons) complained about the way the Council granted planning permission for their neighbour’s extension.

The Council uses the ‘45° Code’ to assess the impact on daylight, sunlight and outlook when considering impact on residential amenity in planning decisions. The Ombudsman found that, on this occasion, the Council failed to record how officers had considered the impact of the contravention of this Code on the Oakhams’ home.

However, the professional judgement of the planning officers who have now replaced those who made the original decision is that, even though the Code was contravened, it was not sufficient to warrant refusal of the application.

However, the Ombudsman finds that the Oakhams suffered injustice in the form of avoidable outrage and frustration from the Council’s maladministration. To remedy the injustice, the Council has agreed to pay Mr and Mrs Oakham £750. It has also issued guidance to officers requiring them to note how they reach a decision and to put their report on the Council’s website.

Date Published: 30/01/09