London Borough of Richmond upon Thames (21 010 534)
Category : Planning > Planning applications
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 16 Nov 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with the complainant’s planning applications. This is because the complainant had the right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
The complaint
- The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mrs X, has complained about how the Council dealt with her planning applications. She says the Council incorrectly advised her regarding the type of application she would need to make, and this led to the applications being refused. Mrs X also disagrees with the Council’s decisions to refuse planning permission and says it should approve the applications and compensate her.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a government minister. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(b))
- The Planning Inspector acts on behalf of the responsible Government minister. The Planning Inspector considers appeals about:
- delay – usually over eight weeks – by an authority in deciding an application for planning permission
- a decision to refuse planning permission
- conditions placed on planning permission
- a planning enforcement notice.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs X could have appealed to the Planning Inspector if she was unhappy with the Council’s decisions to refuse her planning applications. She can also appeal to the Inspector if she disagrees with the enforcement notice recently issued by the Council.
- I consider it would have been reasonable for Mrs X to have used her right of appeal. The Ombudsman will not usually investigate when someone had a right to appeal, even if the appeal would not have addressed all the issues complained about.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it would have been reasonable for her to use her right of appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman