Overview
The complainant (Mr C) claimed that Stirling Council (the Council) did not take account of the views of local residents when dealing with planning applications for a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project to build a new school and new housing on land near to his home. Mr C was also of the view that that the Council did not deal with the planning applications impartially.
Specific complaints and conclusions
The complaints which have been investigated are that the Council:
- (a) failed to take account of the views expressed by local residents in relation to the development of a new school and housing (partially upheld); and
- (b) failed to apply appropriate 'standards in public life' measures when following the planning process (not upheld).
Redress and recommendation
The Ombudsman recommends that the Council ensure that the presentation of the volume and format of objections to development proposals and planning applications, in particular on a similar scale to those dealt with in this report, is clear in reports to Council Committees, and that such reports take care to draw a clear distinction between individual correspondence, and objections from individuals which may come collated in petition form.
The Council have accepted the recommendations and will act on them accordingly.