Summary: We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Council’s approval of a planning application in 2022 and its decision to close an enforcement case in 2023. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about the Council approving a planning application for a restaurant close to his home. He says he has suffered from noise nuisance from the ventilation and other systems and that the approval did not follow the correct procedure. He also complained about the Council’s decision to close a planning enforcement investigation into breaches of planning conditions and failure to carry out a detailed noise investigation.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council’s responses.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

5. Mr X says the Council failed to follow planning procedure by allowing an applicant to withdraw an acoustic report while the application was under consideration and to submit a new one. The plans were considered and approved in 2022 and Mr X did not complain to us until 2025 which is outside the normal 12-month period for receiving complaints.
6. He says that he asked the Council to investigate the site owners for failing to comply with conditions of the planning approval concerning noise from ventilation machinery on the premises. The Council opened an enforcement case in July 2023 and closed it in August, informing Mr X that no breaches had been identified. This decision is also outside the12-month period for receiving a complaint.
7. The time for receiving complaints is from when someone became aware of the matter they wished to complain about, not when they complained to the Council or it issued its final response. We would expect someone to complain to us within a year, even if they were dissatisfied with the time the complaints procedure was taking.
8. The Council says there is an open case for noise nuisance ongoing and Mr X can provide new noise information if he wishes to do so.

Back to top

Final decision

9. We will not exercise discretion to investigate this complaint about the Council’s approval of a planning application in 2022 and its decision to close an enforcement case in 2023. This complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman