The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to rehouse Ms A in a 4 bedroom property. This is because Ms A is a Council tenant and we cannot investigate the Council’s actions in relation to the provision or management of social housing. This is a matter for the Housing Ombudsman.
The complaint
Ms X complains on behalf of Ms A about the Council’s failure to allocate her a 4 bedroom property after a violent incident near Ms A’s home.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
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 A is a Council tenant. The Council has agreed to an emergency transfer for Ms A following the violent incident near her home. The Council says she can only bid for 3 bedroom properties but Ms A says her son needs his own bedroom.
We cannot investigate complaints about the actions of the Council in relation to the provision or management of social housing. This includes “management transfers”. These complaints are matters for the Housing Ombudsman.
We can investigate complaints about the award of reasonable preference on housing applications made by Council tenants however that does not apply in this case as this is a complaint about a management transfer.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms A’s complaint because we cannot investigate the actions of the Council in relation to the provision or management of social housing.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman