Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the time the Council took to validate and decide Mr X’s planning application, and the way it acted in deciding to reuse the application. These matters carry a right of appeal to the Planning Inspector it would be reasonable to use. Investigating the Council’s handling of Mr X’s complaint alone would not lead to any worthwhile outcome.

The complaint

1. Mr X says the Council took too long to validate and decide his planning application. He also says the Council failed to act properly in the way in considering the application. And he complains the Council failed to deal properly with his complaint about these matters.

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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 cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a government minister. The Planning Inspector acts on behalf of a government minister. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(b), as amended)
4. The Planning Inspector acts on behalf of the responsible Government minister. The Planning Inspector considers appeals about:

• Delay – usually over eight weeks – by an authority in deciding an application for planning permission
• A decision to refuse planning permission
• Conditions placed on planning permission
• A planning enforcement notice.

5. 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 there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

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

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Delay by a planning authority in reaching a decision about a planning application is a matter where a right of appeal exists to the Planning Inspector. The same right exists in the event planning permission is refused. It would be reasonable for Mr X to use these rights. We cannot act as an alternative or an auxiliary to them, and the way the Council reached its decision is not a separable matter from the disputed decision. As we are not investigating the substantive matters of the complaint, it would not be productive to investigate the Council’s complaint handling on its own, as this would be unlikely to lead to any worthwhile outcome.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he has an alternative remedy available by way of an appeal to the Planning Inspector. It would be reasonable to use this right.
10. Investigation of the Council’s complaint handling alone would be unlikely to lead to any worthwhile outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman