The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a planning enforcement matter. This is because it is unlikely we could say the Council’s actions caused Mr X significant injustice.
The complaint
The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council has failed to take action to deal with a breach of planning control concerning lighting at an industrial site near his home. He also complains the Council has failed to keep him updated about its investigation into the issue. He says the lights cause light pollution which is visible from his home.
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 Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We do not investigate all the complaints we receive. In deciding whether to investigate we need to consider various tests. These include the alleged injustice to the person complaining. We only investigate the most serious complaints.
Although Mr X says he can see light from his house he lives approximately one mile away from the site with fields, trees and a dual carriageway in the area in between. In the circumstances any light Mr X experiences from the site would not be enough to amount to warrant further investigation.
It is also unlikely we could say the injustice Mr X claims is the result of any fault by the Council. This is because the issue dates back several years but Mr X is only affected by it now as a result of his decision to move to the area. Had he not done so, the issue would not affect him and he would have no cause to complain.
In any event, the Council confirms it is still in the process of investigating the issue and has made no decision on what action it can and should take. If the Council decides the lighting is not subject to enforcement action Mr X may wish to raise the matter as a possible statutory nuisance by contacting the Council’s environmental health team.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the injustice Mr X claims is not significant enough to warrant investigation and is not the result of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman