The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a book display at a local library which Mr X found offensive. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.
The complaint
Mr X complained that the display recently featured at a local library featured derogatory language. He was also unhappy with the Council’s response to his complaint.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide: there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
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 complained to the Council about a book display featured at the local library which featured language he found derogatory and offensive.
The Council did not uphold the complaint, stating that the display was created to encourage equality and connection within the community. Mr X disagreed with the Council’s view and referred the complaint to the Ombudsman as he was unhappy with the response he received.
The evidence shows that the Council has considered Mr X’s views on the display and put forward a reasonable explanation for why it did not find it necessary to remove it. Mr X is entitled to his view but there is no evidence the Council has acted with fault or contravened the law or its own policy in allowing this display to feature at the library. In addition, there is no evidence Mr X has sustained a significant injustice due to this matter. An investigation into this matter would therefore be unlikely to result in a finding of fault on the Council’s part.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman