The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of Mrs X’s housing application. There is not enough evidence of fault to warrant an investigation.
The complaint
Mrs X complains the Council has not given her housing application enough priority. She says this has caused her anxiety and she remains in housing unsuited to her family.
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 Council.
I considered the Council’s Housing Allocations Policy.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council gave Mrs X’s housing application silver priority under its housing allocations policy. Mrs X asked for a review, so an organisation acting for the Council reviewed the decision.
The review considered information Mrs X had provided about her circumstances, including her illness. It upheld the award of silver priority and said it was not persuaded to give higher priority.
Although Mrs X is unhappy with the decision, we will not investigate. The Council took account of the relevant information and its allocations policy when making its decision.
We are not an appeal body. It is not our role to say what decision a Council should make. Unless there is fault in the decision-making process, we cannot comment on the decision reached. The law says councils must make decisions in line with their published allocations scheme. The evidence suggests the Council reached its decision properly.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making to justify our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman