The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s civic enforcement team’s involvement in 2021. The complaint is late, and there are no good reasons for the Ombudsman to investigate now.
The complaint
Mrs X complained about the Council’s civic enforcement team’s involvement with her in late 2021.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mrs X complained to the Council in late 2021. The Council sent a final response in March 2022. Therefore, this complaint is late.
The law says we cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. There are no good reasons Mrs X could not have complained to us sooner. Therefore, we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the complaint is late, and there are no good reasons to investigate now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman