Summary: Ms D says the Council delayed fixing streetlights near her home. We have found some evidence of fault relating to communications by the Council and have upheld the complaint and completed the investigation because the Council has offered a remedy.

The complaint

1. The complainant (whom I refer to as Ms D) says the Council has failed to repair broken streetlights near her home since August 2022.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. 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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What I have and have not investigated

4. I have looked at how the Council responded to reports of broken streetlights directly beside Ms D’s home (there are three lights nearest her property). I have not considered how lights across a wider area have been attended to because the potential injustice to Ms D is not sufficient.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have considered the information provided by Ms D. I asked the Council questions and examined its response.
6. I shared my draft decision with both parties.

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What I found

What happened

7. 23 September 2022 Ms D reported to the Council that a streetlight near her home (light 17) was not working. On 24 October she told the Council that another streetlight (light 16) was also not working. The Council says the Highways Team fixed light 16 on 27 October. However, Ms D reported light 16 as not working three days later. Highways attended again on 7 November and replaced a cell in the light. On 9 November Ms D reported that light 17 was still not working. Ms D also continued to report a problem with light 16. Officers attended on 18 November and found no fault with light 16. They subsequently replaced a damaged lamp on light 17 on 15 December.
8. I have limited evidence about reports from Ms D to the Council for the reasons set out below. However, I see she was in regular contact with a Councillor whom she told there were ongoing issues with lights not working across the estate where she lives.
9. On 8 March 2023 Officers inspected light 17 and did not find a fault. The Council’s LED upgrade programme for the area started in June. Light 15 (near Ms D’s home) was upgraded to LED on 29 August. Lights 16 and 17 were upgraded on 30 August.

What should have happened

10. When a streetlight is not working a resident can make an online report to the Council. The Council’s policy requires it to repair a faulty streetlight (on a non-grid road) within seven days where resources are available for a standard repair. If faults are found that are caused by wider issues (such as cabling) this would not fall under the seven day repair period. Highways Officers will attend a reported streetlight to check if there is a fault. If repairs are carried out they should be recorded. Officers will also note if the light is working correctly.
11. The Council is carrying out a wide programme to upgrade streetlight to LEDs. The Council decided that reports about faults, except for emergencies, would be rolled over in 2023 to be checked when the scheduled LED upgrades took place. This also meant that reports made by residents about faults were not transferred onto new data sheets because the Council says they would be fixed during the LED programme rollout.

Was there fault by the Council

12. The Council accepts that it failed to explain to Ms D about the “pause” on standard streetlight repairs because of the LED programme rollout in 2023. I agree the Council should have made its position clear to Ms D.
13. I cannot see any evidence of significant delay by the Council. In 2022 the reported faults by Ms D were attended by Officers and repairs carried out. I can only reach a view on the contemporaneous corroborating evidence I have. It appears that in 2023 there may have been problems with some lights (it is unclear if they included the three lights near Ms D’s home) not working due to cabling issues. That fault would not fall under the seven day repair period because they require more substantial works and resources. The Council had the right to decide to roll those bigger works into the upgrade programme but, as noted above, it should have explained this to Ms D.

Did the fault case an injustice

14. The Council failed to explain its position on repairs and wider works to Ms D. This left her unclear about what work would be completed.

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Agreed action

15. The Council has offered to pay Ms D £150 redress for her time and trouble. I consider that a reasonable amount and in line with the redress I would have requested.
16. The Council should provide us with evidence it has paid the redress within four weeks of this case closing.

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Final decision

17. I have completed the investigation and upheld the complaint.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman