The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s failure to properly investigate his exclusion from a leisure facility. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to justify our involvement.
The complaint
Mr X complains the Council has failed to properly investigate the legal authority under which he was excluded from a leisure facility. He believes the Council has relied on incorrect information and advice, and failed to confirm the relevant tenant at the time of his exclusion. He believes the Council’s inaction has left him without access to a publicly owned leisure facility without a clear lawful basis. He wants the Council to review and reconsider the basis for his exclusion.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
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, or we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (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 Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
The Council has explained that it had no role in the decision to exclude Mr X from the leisure facility. It has sought legal advice and confirmed the exclusion decision was made by the leaseholder, and Mr X would need to make any challenge against the exclusion directly to the leaseholder.
We will not investigate because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement. Mr X’s disagreement with the Council’s explanation and his belief that it should review the exclusion is not evidence of fault. It appears neither we nor the Council have a role in reconsidering the exclusion decision, so we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X is seeking.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman