The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about Mr X's Blue Badge application because there is not enough evidence of fault in the way the Council considered his application, appeal and complaints to justify an investigation
The complaint
Mr X complains the Council mishandled his Blue Badge application and complaints. He says it failed to properly consider his medical evidence and mobility difficulties. He says the Council failed to follow Department for Transport (DfT) guidance, failed to make reasonable adjustments, and inappropriately referred him to Adult Social Care. He also says there were delays in handling his complaint.
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)) 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) We cannot decide if an organisation has breached the Equality Act as this can only be done by the courts. But we can make decisions about whether or not an organisation has properly taken account of an individual’s rights in its treatment of them.
Organisations will often be able to show they have properly taken account of the Equality Act if they have considered the impact their decisions will have on the individuals affected and these decisions can be challenged, reviewed or appealed.
We will not usually investigate complaint handling if we are not investigating the rest of the complaint. This is because there is not usually enough injustice to justify us doing so. We collect information about particularly poor complaint handling practice and report this back to organisations. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), section 34B(8))
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 Department for Transport’s (DfT) Blue Badge Scheme helps people with severe physical mobility problems, or other conditions affecting their mobility, to access goods and services. The guidance says councils must make sure they only issue badges to residents who satisfy one or more of the criteria set out in legislation.
Mr X says the Council failed to properly consider the medical evidence he provided. The evidence shows the Council considered the information submitted with his application, including GP records, details of his symptoms, use of a walking aid and information about his mobility difficulties. The Council explained why it did not consider the evidence demonstrated that he met the Blue Badge eligibility criteria.
Mr X appealed the decision and later raised complaints about the way the Council had handled the application. The Council reviewed the application, appeal and supporting evidence. It explained why it considered the evidence insufficient to demonstrate eligibility.
Mr X says the Council failed to offer a functional mobility assessment. The evidence shows the Council later referred the matter for review by an Occupational Therapist and offered a further assessment to obtain additional information about his mobility and functional difficulties. Mr X chose not to proceed with that assessment because he did not consider the assessor to be independent.
Mr X also says the Council failed to make reasonable adjustments and did not recognise his vulnerability. We cannot decide whether the Council breached equality legislation. However, we can consider whether it took account of Mr X’s circumstances when handling the matter. The evidence shows the Council considered the information he provided about his condition and offered an Occupational Therapy assessment to obtain further evidence about his mobility and support needs. We have not seen evidence the Council failed to take account of the information available to it.
Mr X says the referral to Adult Social Care was inappropriate. The evidence shows the referral was made so an Occupational Therapist could provide further professional input about his mobility and functional difficulties. We have not seen evidence it was made for an unrelated purpose.
We are not an appeal body. This means we do not decide whether Mr X should receive a Blue Badge. We consider whether there was fault in the way the Council reached its decision. The Council considered the information and evidence Mr X provided, reviewed its decision, and offered a further Occupational Therapy assessment.
We have not seen sufficient evidence of fault in the way the Council considered the application, appeal or complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate this complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman