Recent statements in this category are shown below:
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Chichester District Council (18 017 839)
Statement Not upheld Other 21-Aug-2019
Summary: There was no fault by the Council in a complaint that alleged it misled the public over its dealings with a company which won a tender to operate an ice rink in a local park.
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Wokingham Borough Council (18 001 954)
Statement Upheld Other 19-Aug-2019
Summary: Mrs X complains about the way the Council handled planning matters that affect her home. Mrs X says she has been unable to progress renovations to her home, has incurred application fees that may have been unnecessary, and has spent time and trouble chasing the Council for responses. She says this has all caused her stress. The Ombudsman finds the Council at fault for wrongly issuing a Certificate of Lawfulness and for the way it handled her complaint. We find this fault caused Mrs X injustice. The Ombudsman is satisfied that the Council's refund of the Certificate of Lawfulness application fee is a suitable remedy for that fault. The Council will apologise to Mrs X and make a payment to recognise the injustice caused by the fault in its complaint handling.
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Mid Devon District Council (18 016 678)
Statement Upheld Other 15-Aug-2019
Summary: There was avoidable delay by the Council in dealing with correspondence about Mr X's development, for which it has apologised. The Council's responses were satisfactory and its delays were not the cause of the time, trouble and costs incurred by Mr X in making a new planning application.
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North Somerset Council (18 018 831)
Statement Not upheld Other 12-Aug-2019
Summary: Mr X complained about the Council's decision to allow storage of hazardous substances on land near his home. Mr X believes the Council did not properly consider the risk the development posed. There was no fault in the way the Council made its decision.
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Wyre Borough Council (18 015 231)
Statement Not upheld Other 07-Aug-2019
Summary: Mr X complained about the Council's refusal to pay his business a grant following damage by flooding. I have decided to stop investigating this late complaint. The Council refused the application in March 2017, and Mr X could have complained earlier. I would also be unlikely to find fault.
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Bromsgrove District Council (18 012 505)
Statement Not upheld Other 31-Jul-2019
Summary: There is no fault by the Council leading up to its decision not to take enforcement action over concrete footings. Complaints about applications to convert a barn into houses have not been investigated as one permission cannot be implemented and the other has been refused, so cause no injustice.
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London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (18 004 425)
Statement Not upheld Other 30-Jul-2019
Summary: Mr B complains about the Council's failure to take enforcement action about various issues at the housing development where he lives. Mr B says the development is not in line with planning permission, and his family have suffered as a result. We have ended our investigation. This is because it was reasonable to expect Mr B to have been aware of some of these issues prior to purchase. Also, one of Mr B's complaints is late and where we have investigated, our view is the Council was not at fault.
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Statement Not upheld Other 30-Jul-2019
Summary: Mr C complains that the Council failed to publish a planning application on its planning portal, meaning he was unaware a garage extension would be built close to a property he has now purchased. I have concluded my investigation with a finding of no fault in how the Council published the application.
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Statement Not upheld Other 23-Jul-2019
Summary: Mr X complains the Council has failed to enforce a breach of planning control committed by a neighbour located across the road from his property. He says the work that has been undertaken is incomplete, does not comply with the planning permission that was granted, and is an eyesore. He states the matter has caused him and his wife considerable stress and they are concerned it will affect the value of their property. The Ombudsman has discontinued its investigation into this complaint. This is because Mr X was not caused any significant injustice and we have found no other reason why we should continue to investigate.
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Dorset County Council (18 015 447)
Statement Not upheld Other 16-Jul-2019
Summary: Mr X says the Council failed to take enforcement action against the breach of a planning condition by a local school. This complaint was closed because there was no fault by the Council in terms of its consideration of the planning enforcement matter.