PLANNING officers have come under fire from a Government inspector after they failed to deal with complaints of unauthorised parking at a site in the district.

Anne Seex, the area's Local Government Ombudsman, who investigates complaints of injustice arising from maladministration by local authorities, said the incident highlighted problems of understaffing in Selby District Council's planning department. "The complaint illustrates the impact on a council's planning department of difficulties recruiting and retaining staff and the resulting poor service to residents," she said.

The council was ordered to pay £100 compensation to each of the four complainants in the case.

In December 2004, Lara Layton, who owns Mill Farm, in Mill Lane, South Milford, applied to the council to open a tearoom at the farm, where a nursery and tea garden were already in operation.

In March 2005, permission was granted by the planning case officer, with the proviso that the tearoom should not be opened until parking facilities had been arranged and approved by the planning department and North Yorkshire County Council's highways department.

Later that month, Ms Layton submitted plans for parking facilities on a field adjoining the farm.

But in her report, Ms Seex details how these plans were mistakenly filed as a planning application for parking on the site. This application would be necessary to allow parking at the site on more than 28 days a year.

The following months saw a series of complaints from neighbours as confusion mounted over whether the council had approved parking on the field.

Ms Seex said the council took no enforcement action, despite the parking facilities plan not being approved by the county council's highways department - as the original tea room application demanded. The complainants also claimed the site had been used on more than 28 days in the year, contravening planning rules.

"The council's handling of the planning condition relating to vehicle access and the complaints about the use of the field was maladministration," Ms Seex said.

"This resulted in injustice to the complainants."

Coun Steve Shaw-Wright said understaffing was a big issue in the planning department. "We don't pay the rate for the job. We need more planning officers, more enforcement officers, and higher pay for them."

A council spokesman said: "We have been working alongside the Local Government Ombudsman on this case and recognise that there have been failings, however we have taken action to ensure our procedures are now as robust as possible.

future."

Ms Layton said the car park was no longer in use.