Summary: Mrs X complained the Council failed to take action in respect of disrepair at a privately rented property causing distress and affecting her ability to care for her disabled children. The information provided shows the Council took appropriate action to ensure the landlord completed the repairs and so we find no fault.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council has failed to take action in respect of disrepair at her property.
2. Mrs X says the situation is causing stress and mental health issues as she is struggling to care for four young children, two with disabilities, and the disrepair at the home affects her ability to do this.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. \We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. As part of the investigation, I have:
• considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided;
• discussed the issues with the complainant;
• sent my draft decision to both the Council and the complainant and taken account of their comments in reaching my final decision.

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What I found

6. Mrs X contacted the Council in December 2022 to report disrepair at her privately rented property. A Council Officer visited the property on 16 December and completed an initial inspection. The Officer concluded there were no Category One Hazards but several Category Two Hazards that required him to follow up with the landlord.
7. The site inspection notes show the following issues were found:
• Issue with electric supply to summer house
• Mould and damp in bathroom and vent not working
• Possible roof defects
• Drain route incomplete on outside over the canopy
8. The Council notified Mrs X and her landlord that it would be visiting to carry out a full Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) inspection on 20 December 2022. The site notes of this inspection show the following issues were found:
• No smoke detectors in property
• Extractor in bathroom non functional, issues with tap, incorrect light fitting, radiator not working
• Window ill fitting with no restrictor in the bedroom and a loose light fitting
• Can see daylight through roof in loft, no internal membrane, insufficient insulation and loose ridge tiles
• Outside - Problem with outside rear step, extractor blocked by canopy, electrics exposed, flat roof lifting, guttering blocked, guttering leaking onto canopy, crumbling brickwork, issue with electrics to summerhouse, canopy supported by wooden blocks.
9. The Council issued an improvement notice on 6 January. The notice listed the category two hazards found, the works required to remedy the hazards and the timescale to complete the works.
10. The Council carried out a further site inspection on 21 January. It was noted that this was before the start date cited on the improvement notice and so within the appeal period. The landlord had fitted smoke alarms and Mrs X reported multiple visits by tradespeople but no significant works completed.
11. Council inspectors continued to visit the property to check on the progress of work. Visits were carried out on 14 March, 12 July, and 9 October. The notes indicate some works had been completed but still much outstanding. Mrs X had to cancel a visit planned for 21 December but carried this out on 4 January 2024. During this visit Mrs X raised some new issues including problems with the boiler which keeps shutting off. Mrs X said a heating engineer had visited several times and while he leaves the boiler working, it then goes wrong a week or so later.
12. The Council says it is satisfied that the majority of the works detailed in the improvement notice have been completed. It says sanding and painting the rear wall with water retardant masonry paint is still required along with a further repair to the rear step.
13. The Council says that issues with the heating and the toilet were not reported by Mrs X or noted during the HHSRS inspection and were not on the improvement notice. However, it has been in contact with the landlord who has assured it a visit will take place under his maintenance insurance policy to address these issues.

Analysis

14. Mrs X complains the Council has failed to take action in respect of the disrepair at her property. As this is a privately rented property, the landlord, not the Council, is responsible for the repairs. The Council has a role under the HHSRS and can take enforcement action where it identifies a hazard which puts the health and safety of the tenant at risk. While the Council must take enforcement action when it considers a category one hazard exists, it has discretion to take enforcement action where it identifies a category two hazard.
15. I am satisfied the Council acted promptly in December 2022 when Mrs X reported disrepair at her privately rented property. It carried out inspections and issued an improvement notice within a month of first becoming aware of the problems. The Council has also carried out further visits to ensure the landlord completes the repairs set out in the improvement notice.
16. The information provided to me by the Council shows Mrs X has been in regular contact with the Council about the issues at her property. While the Council may not have responded to every email sent by Mrs X, due to the significant number of contacts from Mrs X, I can see that it has provided regular responses.
17. The Council’s inspection identified category two hazards and so it was not under any duty to take enforcement action. However, it did issue an improvement notice and has ensured completion of the repairs in that notice. I therefore cannot say the Council has failed to take action and find no fault.
18. I am aware that Mrs X continues to have issues with disrepair and that further issues have occurred since the Council issued the improvement notice. The Council has offered advice regarding reporting this to her landlord to ensure he carries out his repair duties. The information suggests that while tradespeople are attending and making some repairs, the faults re-occur. I appreciate this is frustrating for Mrs X and that she is living in difficult conditions. However, I cannot say the problems she is encountering at her property are as a result of fault by the Council.
19. Mrs X applied to the Council for social housing. She says it is impossible to properly care for her severely disabled children in the current property. Mrs X is currently on the waiting list with the appropriate priority to reflect the family is lacking one bedroom as well as having high medical/welfare needs. I have not seen anything to suggest fault in the priority banding given to Mrs X. The Council has also stated that it would offer financial assistance in respect of the deposit and rent in advance if she moved to another private sector property.

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Final decision

20. I will now complete my investigation as there is no evidence of fault by the Council in this case.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman