Summary: We will not investigate Mr C’s complaint about the Council’s refusal to apply a discretionary disregard to his mother’s Mrs D’s property. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault with the actions taken by the Council to warrant an Ombudsman investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr C’s solicitors act on his behalf. Mr C’s representatives say the Council has not properly considered the reasons why it should apply discretion and disregard his mother’s, Mrs D’s property from her financial assessment. Mr C says he has put money into the property, has lived there since birth, provided care and support for Mrs D for several years prior to her moving to a care home, and, is suffering from stress as a result of caring for Mrs D so is unable to seek employment.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
5. The complainant had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision.

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My assessment

6. The Council considered Mr C’s situation and request from his representative to apply the disregard. The Council says it did not meet the criteria for a discretionary disregard. The Council says Mr C provided bank statements showing monthly payments of £120 into Mrs D’s account but has not provided evidence to support his assertion that he was paying the mortgage and upkeep of the house. It said Mr C did not give up a property to care for Mrs D as he already lived in the property. It acknowledged Mr C felt stressed by his role as Mrs D’s carer and was unable to identify suitable employment since Mrs D moved into the care home in 2019. However, it said the details given for a property disregard do not provide sufficient reasons for Mrs D’s asset to be maintained at public expense and refused the property disregard.
7. Mr C’s representatives have asked the Ombudsman to consider the complaint. While Mr C’s solicitors disagree with the outcome of the Council’s decision not to apply the disregard, the Council has considered them and explained its reasons. We are not an appeal body, and it is not for us to reach a different view on a Council’s decision if there is no evidence of fault as in this case. In the absence of fault, we cannot comment on the merits of decisions.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault with the actions taken by the Council to warrant an Ombudsman investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman