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 complained about the Council’s assessment of her housing application. She says she applied in 2021 and the Council should backdate her 2024 banding change to when she first applied.
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.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Miss X says she applied to the Council’s housing register in November 2021. She is sharing her mother’s home and says she is suffering from overcrowding and dampness in the room she uses. She provided updated information for reviews in 2022 and in January 2024. The Council decided that the evidence met the threshold for band 1 in January 2024 and her priority was changed from that date.
Miss X says she applied in 2021 and the revised priority should be backdated to that date. The Council’s allocations policy says that the effective date for an application is the date from when the current priority band was awarded. In this case this is what the Council has done and there is no evidence of fault. Since she complained to the Council Miss X has been accepted under the homelessness relief duty and this has changed her priority again.
The Ombudsman may not find fault with a council’s assessment of a housing application/ a housing applicant’s priority if it has carried this out in line with its published allocations scheme. We recognise that the demand for social housing far outstrips the supply of properties in many areas.
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