West Lindsey District Council (25 024 105)
Category : Planning > Enforcement
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 14 Jun 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of planning and building control. The complaint is late. It was reasonable to expect Mr X to have complained to us sooner.
The complaint
- Mr X complained the Council did not properly handle building control and planning matters relating to a neighbouring property.
- Mr X said this caused distress and affected prospective sales of the property he has an interest in.
- Mr X wants the Council to apologise, withdraw the consents it has issued for the neighbouring property, properly investigate his complaint and compensate him.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- The time for receiving complaints is from when someone becomes aware of the matter they wished to complain about, not when they complained to the Council.
- The matter Mr X wishes to complain about has been known to him since 2022. Mr X complained to the Council formally in 2024. In its complaint response the Council signposted Mr X to us if he remained dissatisfied.
- We cannot investigate this complaint. The complaint is late. It was reasonable to expect Mr X to have complained to us sooner. I have considered all the information Mr X has provided. However, I am not persuaded that we should disapply the law to investigate this complaint now.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. The complaint is late, and it was reasonable to expect him to have complained sooner.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman