Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with an alleged breach of planning control because an investigation by us is unlikely to achieve significantly more than the Council has already done.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains the Council did not properly deal with her report that a business was operating from a neighbouring residential property. Miss X says the increase in visitors, traffic and noise have impacted her privacy and quality of life. Miss X is unhappy about the way the Council communicated with her whilst it looked into her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

2. I considered information provided by the complainant.
3. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. When Miss X complained to us, she wanted the Council to reassess its decision not to take planning enforcement action against her neighbour. In its final response to Miss X the Council agreed to do that. We could not achieve significantly more on this point. It is not for us to say what the result of the reassessment should be, or to decide whether the Council should take enforcement action.
5. Miss X also complained about the Council’s handling of her complaint. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaint procedures if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

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Final decision

6. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint. An investigation by us is unlikely to achieve significantly more than the reassessment the Council had already committed to. It would be disproportionate to investigate the Council’s complaint-handling in isolation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman