The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: Mr and Mrs X complain the Council did not properly consider medical evidence when considering their application to the housing register. Mr and Mrs X say this meant they can’t bid on suitable properties. The Ombudsman finds no fault with the Council for how it applied its policy when considering Mr and Mrs X’s application.
The complaint
Mr X complains the Council has not suitably considered his health needs when deciding his application for the housing register.
Mr X complains that by failing to suitably consider the seriousness of his and his partner's health needs, the Council has left them without suitable accommodation.
Mr X also complains about the Council's handling of his complaint.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended) We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended) If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered Mr X’s complaint and information provided by her. I also considered information by the Council and its allocations policy.
I considered comments from Mr X and the Council on a draft of my decision.
What I found
What should have happened Councils must have an allocation scheme to decide priorities and set out the procedure it will follow when allocating housing. Each council’s allocations scheme will be different but in general most will award 'reasonable preference' to allocations by awarding points or placing an applicant in a certain priority band.
Council allocations policy The Council’s policy says where an applicant, or a member of the applicant’s household, has a medical or welfare need (including grounds relating to disability) that makes living in their current accommodation unsuitable, they can request a welfare assessment.
Generally, all applicants with physical health problems, disability, mental health or learning disabilities should complete a welfare assessment form.
Generally supporting information will be required from an appropriate professional before any additional priority is awarded for medical circumstances.
If the welfare award is increased following additional supporting information i.e. welfare has not worsened but initial award did not reflect welfare need, the eligible band date will be the date the completed housing register application was received.
Applicants have a right to request a review of a council’s decision about the number of points or band they have been awarded.
What happened Mr X and his wife, Mrs X, live in a two-bedroom house. Both Mr X and Mrs X have several health conditions.
Mr X applied to the Council’s housing register for a two-bedroom property because of the health needs for him and his wife. Some of the reasons listed in their application included the equipment needed for Mrs X’s health needs, and that they often had family members to stay and help them.
Mr X supplied the Council with evidence from their GP. This evidence said the GP supported their application for an additional bedroom as a single bedroom was not suitable and “would aggravate their existing conditions”.
The Council reviewed the application from Mr X and the evidence he gave. It did this through a health and wellbeing panel.
It awarded Mr and Mrs X banding in Band E. This meant that they were not eligible for a two-bedroom property. In its decision, the Council said it had not been provided with enough evidence that Mr and Mrs X’s health needs required separate bedrooms.
Mr X complained to the Council about its decision. He felt the Council had not looked at all the medical evidence.
The Council reviewed Mrs X’s application and upheld the first decision. It said that it did not have enough evidence to award medical priority to the application and advised Mrs X that she could send any evidence she has from further professionals.
Mr X complained to the Ombudsman about the decision.
Analysis Medical needs priority Council’s must publish allocation policies which set out how applications are considered and decided.
The Ombudsman cannot investigate or challenge decisions just because someone disagrees with them. Where a Council can show reasonable decision making, the Ombudsman cannot find fault. A Council is entitled to make its decision if it has considered all available evidence.
With Mr and Mrs X, the Council were told of the conditions that Mr and Mrs X had and were supplied with a GP letter confirming that they would benefit from an extra bedroom due to their health conditions.
The Council’s policy says that all application for medical priority will be considered by a medical and wellbeing panel. The Council has been able to demonstrate that it considered the information from Mr and Mrs X and the GP, however it was not enough evidence to grand higher priority for an extra bedroom.
The Council was entitled to make this decision based on the evidence presented, and according to its allocations policy.
The Council asked Mr and Mrs X if they had any further information from other professionals about their conditions. The Council asked for any evidence that could show the need for equipment, deterioration of their conditions or a need for carers to support them. At the time, Mr and Mrs X were not under any other professional care for their conditions, and were solely being managed by the GP, therefore they could not provide further information.
Since Mr and Mrs X sent their complaint, they have received an Occupational Therapy Assessment. It would therefore be reasonable for Mr and Mrs X to ask the Council to review the decision considering the new assessment. However, the Council is entitled to consider the new assessment in line with its policy and it may mean the decision does not change.
Complaint handling When Mr and Mrs X bought the complaint to the Ombudsman, they had not sent a formal complaint to the Council. The Council had previously reviewed the decision under its review procedures.
The Ombudsman forwarded the complaint to the Council. The Council responded to Mr and Mrs X quickly at stage one and could not uphold their complaint. It directed them back to the Ombudsman.
The Ombudsman finds no fault with how the Council handled the complaint. It considered the complaint within its Complaint handling timeframes once the complaint was received and signposted Mr and Mrs X to the Ombudsman.
Final decision
I have now completed my investigation. I find no fault with the Council for how it applied its policy to Mr and Mrs X’s application to the housing register.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman