Summary: We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s decision to approve a planning application. This is because this part of his complaint is late and I have found no good reason why he could not have come to us sooner. Also, I have not found enough evidence of fault to warrant investigating his concerns about the Council’s response to his reports of use of a premises outside permitted hours.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council’s decision to retrospectively grant planning permission for a sports facility to be built near his home.
2. He says the noise from the sports activities and the light from the headlights are affecting his health. He also complains that the sports facility is being used outside its restricted times.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mr X complains about the way the Council processed a retrospective planning application for a sports facility near his home and its subsequent decision to approve the application.
8. Whilst I acknowledge his concerns, we cannot investigate this complaint as it is late. The Council granted planning permission in July 2023. Mr X came to us in August 2025, just over two years later.
9. Any concerns that Mr X has that arise directly from the retrospective granting of planning permission are therefore late. I have seen no good reason why he could have come to us sooner.
10. Mr X also complains that the sports facility is being used outside its permitted times. However, I note that the Council has made visits to the site in response to complaints about use outside permitted hours. It has also asked Mr X to keep a written log of specific instances of breaches.
11. I have not found enough evidence of fault with how the Council handled this part of Mr X’s complaint and an investigation by us would not lead to a different outcome.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because concerns about the planning application process are made too late. And I have not found enough evidence of fault to warrant investigating the part of the complaint about the Council’s response to his reports of use of the sports facility outside of permitted hours.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman