South Ribble Borough Council (23 018 998)
Category : Planning > Planning applications
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 29 Feb 2024
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with the complainant’s planning application. This is because the complainant has the right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
The complaint
- Mr X has complained about how the Council dealt with his planning application. He says the Council’s actions have affected his health and he has suffered financial losses.
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), as amended)
- 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 Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X says his complaint is not about the Council’s decision to refuse planning permission. Instead, his concerns relate to how the application was dealt with and the behaviour of the planning officers. However, the Ombudsman must consider the personal injustice that may have arisen as a direct result of any alleged fault. The substantive injustice in this case is that the Council refused Mr X’s application. I consider it unlikely Mr X would have raised his concerns had his application been approved. Mr X can seek a remedy for the substantive injustice by appealing to the Planning Inspector and I consider it reasonable for him to use this appeal right. The Ombudsman will not usually investigate when someone has a right to appeal to the Planning Inspector, even if the appeal will not address all the issues complained about.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he has the right to appeal to the Planning Inspector.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman