The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with a planning application. This is because we are unlikely to find fault and land ownership disputes will be a private civil matter.
The complaint
The complainant, whom I shall refer to as Mr X, has complained about how the Council dealt with his neighbour’s planning application. Mr X says the decision to grant planning permission was based on inaccurate plans and the case officer failed to visit the site to properly assess the proposal. Mr X says the development will encroach on his land and the matter has caused him considerable stress.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X says the proposed development will encroach on his land. However, it is not for the Council to get involved in land ownership disputes and the planning process cannot resolve land ownership issues. Instead, this will be a private civil matter between Mr X and his neighbour.
Mr X has also complained the Council failed to visit the site before granting planning permission. However, council officers are not obliged to carry out site visits before deciding on a planning application. Officers will often already have local knowledge of an area and be able to identify the impact of a proposed development using ariel photographs and other tools. In this case, I am satisfied the Council has explained how it was able to assess the application without visiting the site.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are unlikely to find fault by the Council. Land ownership disputes will be a private civil matter between Mr X and his neighbour.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman