Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a planning matter. This is because the matter has not caused Mr X significant injustice and it is unlikely investigation would achieve any worthwhile outcome for Mr X as the law does not allow us to question its officers’ professional judgement.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council is harassing him to obtain building regulations approval for development he has carried out at the rear of his property. Mr X believes the development does not need building regulations approval and says the Council’s correspondence has caused him and his family stress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. We do not investigate all the complaints we receive. In deciding whether to investigate we need to consider various tests. These include the alleged injustice to the person complaining. We only investigate the most serious complaints.
5. I appreciate Mr X is concerned about the Council’s instructions to obtain approval for the development, which he considers unnecessary, but the matter has not caused him significant injustice; we will not therefore investigate it further.
6. In addition to this the substantive issue here concerns a matter of professional judgement; specially, whether the development requires planning permission and/or building regulations approval. If Mr X believes the Council is wrong about the need to apply for this he may continue to decline to do so. The Council will then decide whether to take more formal action against him. At the present time the Council has explained its view that permission/approval is required and it is not for us to say it is wrong.

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Final decision

7. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council and the matter does not cause Mr X significant injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman