Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the process the Council follows when serving enforcement notices. This is because the complainant has not suffered any significant personal injustice as a result of the alleged fault.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr X, has complained about the Council’s enforcement procedures. Mr X says the Council serves enforcement notices to the owners of the land that abuts the site where unauthorised development has occurred. Mr X says the Council’s approach ignores government guidance and the threatening letters it sends cause unnecessary stress to residents. Mr X says the Council should change its procedures.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide:

• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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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. The Town and Country Planning Act says after the local planning authority has served an enforcement notice, it may write to the person it has served the notice to explaining they do not appear at risk of prosecution.
5. Mr X says in circumstances where the Council has served an enforcement notice to neighbouring landowners, it should contact them and explain they are not at risk of prosecution to avoid any unnecessary stress or expenses. Mr X says the Council is ignoring government guidance by failing to do this.
6. However, even if I were to say the Council was at fault in this regard, I do not consider Mr X has suffered any significant personal injustice as a result. The Council has not taken enforcement action against Mr X or served him with an enforcement notice because of any unauthorised development on neighbouring land.
7. Mr X has also complained about the Council’s complaint handling. However, where the Ombudsman has decided not to investigate the substantive issues complained about, we will not usually use public resources to consider more minor matters such as complaint handling.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he has not suffered any significant personal injustice as a result of the alleged fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman