Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (21 012 090)
Category : Environment and regulation > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 14 Dec 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s alleged failure to do enough to tackle various environmental issues. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. It is unlikely we could add anything to the response the complainant has already received.
The complaint
- The complainant, Mrs X, complains the Council is not doing enough to promote decarbonisation. Mrs X wants the Council to provide residents in its area with more information about climate change and ecological issues.
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 effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- The Council has responded to Mrs X and explained what it has done to communicate information about climate change. It has set out the steps it is taking to tackle the issue. This includes working with schools and colleges. It has consulted with the public about what it should do to tackle climate change.
- It is clear Mrs X is concerned about the issues at the heart of her complaint. But the role of the Ombudsman is to look for administrative fault by councils. It is not our role to say what broad policies councils should operate. These are decisions for elected members and senior officers. We will not therefore investigate. This is because it is unlikely we could add anything to the response Mrs X has already received.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is unlikely we could add anything to the response she has already received.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman