The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about an unsuccessful application for a dropped kerb. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
The complaint
The complainant, Mrs X, disagrees with the Council’s decision to refuse her application for a dropped kerb.
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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mrs X. This includes the correspondence about the dropped kerb. I also considered our Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mrs X applied for a dropped kerb. As part of the application she recorded that her drive is 4.8 metres deep and 3.4 metres wide. The Council assessed the application and the site. The Council decided not to grant consent for a dropped kerb because the drive does not meet the minimum depth requirement of 5 metres. The Council also said Mrs X does not meet the minimum width requirement of 9.6 metres for parallel parking.
Mrs X disagrees with the decision. Some of her points include the difficulty she has finding a parking space, that she has a small car, that the drive is only 20cm short, and some neighbours have dropped kerbs.
The Council’s dropped kerb policy says the depth of the driveway must be at least 5 metres. It also says parallel parking requires 9.6 metres in width. The policy says the Council will not take existing dropped kerbs into account when assessing a new application.
I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. We do not act as an appeal body and it is not my role to re-make the decision or decide if Mrs X is eligible for a dropped kerb. I can only consider if there was fault in the way the Council made the decision and I see no suggestion of fault. This is because the Council’s decision to reject the application reflects the policy and the minimum size requirements.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman