The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to install a public litter bin. This is because the Council’s actions have not caused Ms X an injustice.
The complaint
Ms X says the Council removed a bin from a bus stop in its area. She says this has led to an increase in littering. Ms X wants the Council to reinstall the bin, but the Council refused.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Ms X says the Council removed a bin from a bus stop in its area. She says this led to an increase in littering. Ms X voluntarily picks the litter and wants the Council to reinstall the bin. The Council told Ms X that it would not reinstall the bin. Its decision was based on previous evidence of fly tipping.
Whilst it is commendable that Ms X picks up litter in the area, she does so voluntarily. The Council is not responsible for actions of members of the public who drop litter and it says the presence of a bin made littering in the area worse rather than better. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint as Ms X has not been caused a significant injustice as a result of the Council’s actions.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because she has not been caused an injustice as a result of the Council’s actions.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman