Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint about the Council’s planning process and decision for a site in its area several years ago. The complaint is late and there is no good reason for us to investigate it now. Even if we did investigate, we could not achieve the complaint outcome Miss X seeks.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains that several years ago the Council:
1. granted an ‘outline’ planning permission for the expansion of a site, despite acknowledged inaccuracies on the application form;
2. failed to require correct wildlife, environmental and tree surveys for the site.
2. Miss X considers that if the application had been made correctly, the permission would not have been granted. She is concerned about the loss of the land and wildlife, the visibility of the site from a public footpath and pollution from the developer’s activities. Miss X has campaigned to save the woodland for several years and the planning matter has caused her immense anxiety and stress which affects her mental health. She wants the planning permission revoked to protect the woodland as an Asset of Community Value.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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 has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
4. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information from Miss X, relevant online planning information, and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. The Council received and determined the ‘outline’ planning application about which Miss X has complained over five years ago. The site has since been the subject of further ‘reserved matters’ applications. These later applications have sought permission and approval for the details of the proposed development which had not been in the outline application. Miss X submitted several objections to the Council on two of the later applications where there were public consultations. She complained to the Council about its decision on the outline application in February 2024. She complained to us about the same planning process in August 2024.
7. We expect people to complain to us about something they believe a council has done wrong within 12 months of them becoming aware of the matters complained of. Any complaint made 12 months after someone knows about the complaint issues is late. Miss X knew about the planning matters complained of for several years before raising them with us, so her complaint is late.
8. We may decide to investigate a late complaint if we consider there are good reasons to do so. Miss X’s objections to later applications show she has been aware of the Council’s decision to grant permission to the outline application for several years. That she made those objections indicates she had capacity and ability to have instead complained to the Council and, if dissatisfied with the outcome, then complained to us much sooner. Any lack of knowledge of the Ombudsman is not a good reason for us to exercise discretion to investigate late complaints as we have existed for 50 years and information about our service is publicly available. There is insufficient evidence of any action or inaction by Council officers here causing Miss X’s complaint to us to be late. There are no good reasons to justify us exercising our discretion to investigate this late complaint now.
9. We note Miss X wants the Council to revoke the outline planning permission to protect the site from the development. Even if we had investigated this late complaint, we cannot order councils to revoke granted permissions. That we cannot achieve the outcome Miss X seeks from her complaint is a further reason why we would not have investigated here.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because:
• the complaint is late and there is no good reason for us to investigate it now; and
• even if we did investigate, we could not have achieved the outcome she wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman