Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council approving a planning application for a development next to the complainant’s home. There is not enough evidence of fault in the wat the Council reached its decision, and the complainant may contact the ICO with any freedom of information concerns.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council failed to properly consider his objections to his neighbour’s planning application, and therefore questions whether the planning permission is valid.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We can 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. So, we do not start an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
4. The law also says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone has a right of appeal, reference or review to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
5. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) considers complaints about freedom of information. Its decision notices may be appealed to the First Tier Tribunal (Information Rights). So, where we receive complaints about freedom of information, we normally consider it reasonable to expect the person to refer the matter to the Information Commissioner.

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered:
• information provided by Mr X and the Council, which included their complaint correspondence.
• information about the planning application on the Council’s planning webpage.
• the email sent to the Chair of the Planning Committee about the proposed delegated decision.
• the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. I appreciate Mr X is very concerned about the development at the neighbouring property.
8. But the Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a planning decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether the complainant disagrees with the decision the organisation made.
9. I consider there is not enough evidence of fault in the way the Council has determined the application to justify starting an investigation. In reaching this view, I am mindful that:
• The purpose of the location plan is primarily to identify where the site is located. The proposed ground floor and elevation plans provide further detail about what is proposed, and show the proposed extension relative to the existing dwelling and Mr X’s home.
• The case officer visited the application site, and online images of the street are included in the case officer’s report. I am therefore satisfied the officer would have been aware of the positioning/proximity of the two properties.
• Planning is concerned with land use in the public interest. Therefore, private matters such as boundary disputes or party wall concerns are not material planning considerations when an application is being determined.
• The case officer’s report summarises and addresses Mr X’s objections.
10. And if Mr X remains concerned about the Council’s response to his request for information regarding the email sent to the Chair of the Planning Committee, then it seems reasonable to expect him to pursue the matter with the ICO.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council, and he may contact the ICO with any freedom of information concerns.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman