Wealden District Council (19 006 141)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: The complaint is about the Council’s delay in dealing with a neighbour’s lawful development certificate application. The Ombudsman has discontinued his investigation, as the complainant has advised the Council is now taking action.
The complaint
- The complainant, whom I shall describe as Mrs H, complain about the Council’s delay in dealing with their neighbour’s application for a lawful development certificate.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these.
- We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information and communications Mrs H sent us.
What I found
Background
- A breach of planning control includes the carrying out of development without the required planning permission. But development becomes lawful, for planning purposes, if the land the land has been in continuous use for more than 10 years. Owners of such development can apply to a council for a lawful development certificate, which confirm the lawfulness.
What happened
- Mrs H and her family live next to a site where there has allegedly been unauthorised development. In March 2018 their neighbours submitted an application for a lawful development certificate.
- In July 2019, Mrs H complained to the Ombudsman that the Council had still not made a decision on the lawful development certificate application.
- Shortly after we allocated Mrs H’s complaint to an investigator, Mrs H emailed us advising they had had a productive meeting with an officer from the Council’s planning department. The officer advised them the Council was dealing with the application. So Mrs H asked us to put her complaint “on hold for the time being”.
Final decision
- I have discontinued my investigation on Mrs H’s instruction.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman