Easter closure

Please note that we will be closed from 5pm Thursday 28 March until Tuesday 2 April 2024 for the Easter break. Complaints can still be made via our complaints form but they will not be received until we reopen. Wishing you a happy Easter! 

Technical issues:

The SPSO advice line is currently unavailable due to technical issues which we are working with our telephone provider to resolve.  We apologise for the inconvenience and hope to find a resolution as soon as possible. 

Decision report 201102101

  • Case ref:
    201102101
  • Date:
    August 2012
  • Body:
    Fife Council
  • Sector:
    Local Government
  • Outcome:
    Some upheld, recommendations
  • Subject:
    handling of application (complaints by applicants)

Summary

Mr C raised a number of concerns about the handling of both his planning application and his representations. In particular, he complained about the time taken to process his application.

Our investigation found that while Mr C's application was not determined within two months that was not, in itself, maladministration. The law provides for such delays and gives applicants an avenue of appeal. However, we found that there had been a breakdown in communication within the council which had added to the delay in dealing with the application, which we considered unreasonable.

We also found that the council did not handle Mr C's complaint in line with their complaints process. However, there was no evidence that they had failed to provide a reasonable response to the issues raised by Mr C.

Recommendations

We recommended that the council:

  • apologise for the delays identified in the complaint.

 

Updated: March 13, 2018