Summary: Mrs X complains the Council have unfairly dealt with reports of items in the front garden of her property under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act. Mrs X says this has caused her a great deal of distress. We have discontinued investigating this complaint as Ms X has the right to appeal the notice the Council has issued to court.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council have unfairly dealt with reports of items in the front garden of her property under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act.
2. Mrs X says this has caused her a great deal of distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. It is our decision whether to start, and when to end an investigation into something the law allows us to investigate. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
5. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I have considered the information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
7. Mrs X and the Council were invited to comment on my draft decision. Any comments received have been considered before a final decision was issued.

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What I found

8. The Council wrote to Mrs X in late February 2024 about the condition of her front garden and the items stored within it. The Council said if Mrs X did not take steps to resolve the condition and items it would issue a Notice under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The Notice would require action to be taken.
9. The Council wrote to Mrs X again in mid-May 2024 and said Mrs x had not contacted it about its last letter. The Council asked Mrs X to contact it within 10 days of the letter.
10. The Council issued a Notice under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to Mrs X in late May 2024. This outlined the action Mrs X must take and also told her she had a right of appeal to the courts.
11. The Council wrote to Mrs X again in September 2024 to say the action listed in the notice had not been taken and that it intended to carry out the steps required in accordance with Section 219 of the town and Country Planning Act.

Analysis

12. The Ombudsman cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. I have seen no reason why Mrs X could not have used her right of appeal as outlined in the Council’s letter in May 2024.
13. Therefore, I will discontinue this investigation as Mrs X could have appealed the Notice.

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Final decision

14. I have discontinued this investigation.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman