Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of his comments about a planning application. This is because we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X wants, which is to revisit the application with a view to changing the design and layout of the access to the development site.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council’s handling of, and response to, his comments about access and visibility relating to a planning application. He says the Council failed to answer his questions or to follow advice from a legal professional. He wants the Council to accept he was right, revise the approved plans, carry out further consultation and make a fresh decision on the application.

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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:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• 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

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. I appreciate Mr X disagrees with the Council’s view on the planning application and is unhappy with the way the Council considered and responded to his comments, but its involvement was as a consultee rather than decision-maker. It is not therefore responsible for the local planning authority’s decision to grant planning permission and cannot revoke the decision or require changes to the approved plans. We cannot therefore achieve the outcome Mr X wants, even if we were to investigate and find fault by the Council.
5. I understand Mr X would like the Council to accept he was right, but it is not a good use of our limited resources to investigate issues on a point of principle. Neither would it be worthwhile to look at the Council’s handling of Mr X’s concerns and his complaint, bearing in mind that we cannot achieve any changes to the development, which has already been implemented.

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Final decision

6. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X wants.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman