The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s consultation on its Local Plan. The Planning Inspector decided the Local Plan is sound, including its consultation with residents and businesses. The Ombudsman cannot consider decisions made by the Planning Inspector. The complainant also complains about the Council’s decision to approve planning applications on sites allocated in the Local Plan. We will not investigate this part of the complaint as we are unlikely to find fault.
The complaint
The complainant, who I shall refer to as Mr X, complains the Council failed to contact all borough residents before allocating a green belt site in its local plan.
He also complains about the Councils’ decision to grant planning permission for development on the site and wants the planning permission withdrawn.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6)) We investigate complaints about councils and certain other bodies. We cannot investigate the actions of bodies such as the Planning Inspectorate. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 25 and 34A, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information: provided by Mr X and the Council; available on the Council’s website; and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
Background
Local planning authorities decide applications according to their local development plan unless any other material considerations suggest otherwise. Local plans must follow statutory procedures for public consultation and inspection by the Planning Inspectorate before the authorities can adopt them.
The Council prepared its Local Plan over several years. The information available on the Council’s website suggests it followed the statutory consultation process including writing to all borough residents and business. The Council submitted the Local Plan to the Planning Inspectorate in 2016 who held Examination Hearings in 2017. The Council received the Inspector’s Report later that year confirming the proposed Local Plan was sound, including the consultation process. The Secretary of State issued a Holding Direction, preventing the Council from adopting the Local Plan.
The Secretary of State lifted the Holding Direction in 2019 and the Council adopted it that year.
What happened Mr X complains about the Council’s decision to approve planning application for large-scale developments on green belt sites. The sites concerned are allocated for development in the Local Plan.
I will not investigate Mr X’s concerns about the Local Plan consultation. The Planning Inspector approved this as sound. The law says we cannot investigate matters dealt with by a government minister. The Planning Inspectorate acts for a government minister.
I will not investigate Mr X’s concerns about the decisions to grant planning permission. It is the Council’s role, as local planning authority, to reach a judgement about whether a development is acceptable after consideration of local and national planning policies, comments from statutory consultees and objections/representations from people affected by the decision.
The evidence I have seen strongly suggests this is what has happened in this case and therefore the Ombudsman would be unlikely to find that there had been fault if he investigated.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint for the reasons given above.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman