East Sussex County Council (20 012 823)
Category : Planning > Planning applications
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 12 Oct 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Ms X complains about the Council’s decision to grant planning permission for demolition and a replacement building. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because there is no evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
- Ms X complains about the Council’s decision to grant planning permission for demolition and a replacement building.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
- I considered the complainant’s comments on my draft decision.
My assessment
- Ms X is a member of a Bat Conservation Trust and objected to a planning application in 2020 to demolish a building and erect a replacement.
- The Planning Officer report summarises her objection and provides a detailed response. The report states that three ecology reports were provided as support for the planning application.
- The Planning Officer refers to Ms X’s concern about the effect upon bats but concludes that the bat surveys were properly undertaken and the proposed use of external lighting would minimise any impact. The Council nevertheless added a condition to the planning permission requiring an ecological strategy to be provided which would seek to protect retained habitats.
- I am satisfied that the Council properly considered Ms X’s objections. In the absence of procedural fault, it is not for the Ombudsman to question the merits of the Council‘s decision.
Final decision
- I do not intend to investigate this complaint because there is no evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman