The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s decision to extend the period she is excluded from using its libraries. There is not enough evidence of fault in the way the Council made its decision.
The complaint
Ms X complains the Council has repeatedly extended her ban from library premises for sheltering outside the building.
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. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council banned Ms X from using library premises. It put an acceptable user agreement in place which stated Ms X could not sit in the entrance to the library to use its Wi-Fi after the library closed.
The Council extended the ban on three occasions. Each time, it wrote to Ms X and explained that she was seen sitting in the entrance to the library to use the Wi-Fi on several occasions after the library closed. Each time, it said it would extend the ban by a further six months. Ms X continued to sit in the doorway even though the acceptable user agreement stating this would result in her library membership being revoked.
I will not investigate this complaint. The Council’s extension of Ms X’s exclusion is in line with its published Library Exclusion Policy. There is not enough evidence of fault with the Council’s decision-making to justify an investigation.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman