The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of a housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.
The complaint
Miss X and her partner complained to the Council about its assessment of their housing application. It originally accepted that they had three 3 children resident but when nominated for a vacancy the Council’s diligence checks confirmed that two children were considered to be part of their mother’s household. They say this is unreasonable because the two children spend 50% of their time in their household so they should be included.
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 how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered the information provided by the complainant and the Council’s response and review.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss X and her partner register for rehousing on the Council’s housing register. They say they have three children and that they need a bigger home with a garden. They were nominated for a larger property but the Council’s verification check of their application confirmed that two children also are part of their mother’s household which is a council tenancy. The Council told them that they are adequately housed in a household of two adults and one child and that the other children also have accommodation which they can reasonably occupy.
The complainants argued that the children spend 50% of their time at their home so they should be included as part of their household. The Council carried out a review of the decision under s.166A of the Housing Act 1996. The review concluded that the two children could not be included on their application under its policy and that they were part of another household which it was reasonable for them to occupy.
The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether someone disagrees with the decision the organisation made. The review took into account all the relevant information and there is no evidence of fault in this.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of a housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman