Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to issue Mrs X with a blue badge. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained the Council has decided not to issue her with a blue badge.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X applied for a blue badge as she has mobility problems. The Council carried out a telephone assessment and decided she was not eligible for one and informed her of this.
6. Mrs X was unhappy with the Council's decision and appealed. She also said the Council made errors in its assessment. The Council then carried out a face-to-face assessment but came to the same conclusion.
7. Mrs X remains unhappy with the Council’s decision and wants us to find the Council at fault. The Ombudsman cannot decide whether Mrs X should have a blue badge, it can only review the Council’s assessment and determine whether it took the right approach when conducting it. There is no evidence of fault in the Council’s decision making. An assessment would therefore be unlikely to result in a finding of fault.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because an investigation would be unlikely to find fault with the Council’s actions.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman