The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: The complainant, Mr X, complains about the Council’s handling of noise nuisance complaints he made against businesses and street performers on the high street where he lives. We will not investigate the complaint because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
The complainant, I will call Mr X, complains the Council fails to stop the noise from businesses and street performers or preachers on the high street where he lives.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in the decision making, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended) 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 there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X complains the Council has not resolved his noise complaint. However, the Council did investigate but it did not find a statutory nuisance against which it could take enforcement action. It: spoke to business requiring they stop unacceptable early morning deliveries advised businesses that no music should be audible outside their stores required a street preacher to turn off his microphone. He played music at an acceptable noise level for the high street advised other street preachers about the code of practice for outdoor performers.
The Council has also confirmed that it cannot take action against : motorbikes which park in the designated parking space which has been in situ for many years traffic such as security vans or delivery teams which require access to the high street at different times during the day.
It is not our role to question the merits of decisions a council makes if it has followed the right steps and considered the relevant evidence and information. In the professional view of officers, the noise from those operating in and/or visiting the high street was not considered unacceptable given the site’s established use in the locality.
I understand Mr X disagrees with this decision. However, I have seen no evidence to suggest it was affected by fault. If there has been a substantial change in the nature or type of noise then he can report this to the Council for further consideration of the matter.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because we are unlikely to find fault in the way the Council considered his report of noise.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman