Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to grant planning permission for development to a property in a village where the complainant lives. This is because there is insufficient personal injustice caused to the complainant to warrant our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council approved an application without sufficiently taking into account the impact on the neighbours.

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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 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

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the information available on the Council’s website.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. I understand Mr X is a concerned resident and considers the impact of the development on the immediate neighbours is unacceptable. However, Mr X lives about five hundred metres from the site. He is not an immediate neighbour and is not affected by the planning permission.

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Final decision

6. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we consider he has not suffered a significant personal injustice because of the Council’s actions.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman