Ombudsman finds planning flaw after resident left in dark

Westmeath County Council has been compelled to overhaul its planning procedures following a complaint to the Ombudsman, which alleged that the council had approved a housing development without ensuring the site notice met legal visibility requirements.

The case is described in the Office of the Ombudsman’s 2024 report – published last Wednesday, which reveals that the office dealt with a total of 4778 cases last year, of which 83 were from Westmeath.

Joe (not his real name), was unaware that a house was being built on a site directly behind his home until construction was already under way. By the time he discovered the development, the planning process had concluded and the period for lodging an appeal to An Bord Pleanála had expired.

Joe investigated and found that while a site notice had been erected, it was placed on a private laneway some 60 to 70 metres from the nearest public road – a location that rendered it invisible to the public and in breach of planning legislation.

Despite raising the issue with Westmeath County Council, Joe said the local authority refused to engage with him, prompting him to escalate the matter to the Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman reviewed the planning file and confirmed that the site notice had been incorrectly located. It concluded that the council had wrongly assessed the notice as compliant with statutory requirements, which are designed to ensure neighbours and other interested parties are made aware of proposed developments and have the opportunity to respond.

Although the Ombudsman has no legal authority to overturn planning decisions, it recommended that Westmeath County Council take action to prevent such errors in the future.

In response, the council committed to revising its procedures for inspecting site notices. It also introduced a specific provision requiring that, in cases where a site is accessed via a private laneway, photographs must be provided to show the notice is both visible and legible from the nearest public road – as the law demands.

Read next : https://www.westmeathexaminer.ie/2025/06/26/112822/