Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a planning application. This is because the complaint is late and the injustice Mr X claims is entirely speculative.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council failed to properly consider the impact of a new housing development on land near his home. He is concerned about the risk of subsidence to his property as a result of the new development.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
3. 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/care provider has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The Council granted planning permission for the development in 2019. Mr X complained to the Council and brought his complaint to us in December 2021; his complaint is therefore more than a year late. I have considered whether to exercise our discretion to investigate the late complaint but I have seen no good reasons to do so. Mr X knew about the application and the Council’s decision to grant planning permission at the time and it would have been reasonable for him to come to us sooner.
6. In any event, the main issue in this case concerns a dispute over the Council’s judgement and its interpretation of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and it is not for us to decide who is right.
7. Mr X also suggests the developer cannot implement the planning permission and will need to submit a new application before they can proceed with the development. If this is the case Mr X will have a further opportunity to submit his comments and if he believes the Council’s decision is wrong in law he would have the right to challenge it at court. Any injustice he claims at this stage is entirely speculative and we cannot provide a remedy for something which has not yet happened.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint is late and the issue has not caused Mr X significant injustice for which we could recommend a remedy. It is also not for us to question the Council’s judgement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman