Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the way the Council dealt with a planning application for a property adjoining the complainant’s home. We consider she has not suffered sufficient personal injustice because of the Council’s actions to warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains the Council incorrectly validated a planning application for the house which adjoins her own semi-detached home. She says the Council also:
• failed to act on reports of breaches of planning control
• incorrectly validated a planning application; and
• failed to provide sufficient information to the Planning Inspectorate when her neighbour appealed the Council’s decision to refuse their planning application.
2. Ms X says the development to her neighbour’s home is detrimental to the roofscape and streetscape. She says the pair of semi-detached properties look “grossly imbalanced” and an eyesore.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided Ms X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Our role is to consider complaints where the person bringing the complaint has suffered significant personal injustice as a direct result of the actions or inactions of the Council. This means we will normally only investigate a complaint where the complainant has suffered serious loss, harm, or distress as a direct result of faults or failures of the Council.
7. I acknowledge Ms X’s concerns that the development and alterations to the roof of the property next to hers has resulted in an imbalanced roofline on the pair of semi-detached houses. I also acknowledge the road is located within a conservation area and Ms X’s views on the impact of the development of the character and appearance of the road which is within a conservation area. However, having reviewed information provided by Ms X and the Council,  I do not see that she is personally and significantly impacted by the development.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Ms’s complaint because I do not consider her claimed injustice is so personal and significant to justify our involvement.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman