Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s decision not to issue concessionary bus passes for her daughter’s care workers. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify us investigating.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains on behalf of her disabled daughter, Ms Y.
2. Ms Y has a disabled person’s bus pass. Due to her disability, she needs care workers to accompany her during bus travel. The Council decided not to issue bus passes for Ms Y’s care workers because it is not covered by its concessionary travel scheme. This means Ms Y must fund the cost of her care workers’ travel herself.
3. Ms X disagrees with the Council’s decision. She complains the Council has interpreted the national concessionary travel scheme too narrowly and failed to use discretion in Ms Y’s circumstances. She says the decision discriminates against those who rely on carers for day-to-day needs.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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)).

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by Ms X.
6. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code and the English national concessionary travel scheme (ENCTS).

Back to top

My assessment

7. Under the ENCTS, councils must provide free off-peak bus travel to eligible older people and disabled people within their local area. This is the statutory minimum. The law also allows councils to offer discretionary concessionary travel schemes that go beyond this minimum. For example, a council may offer concessionary travel for people travelling as companions for disabled people. Any discretionary arrangements are funded from the council’s own local resources. Councils are not legally required to offer such schemes, and residents cannot require them to do so.
8. The Council’s concessionary travel scheme is available to eligible disabled people, older people and unemployed people. It does not extend to carers travelling as companions for disabled people. As noted above, the law only requires councils to provide the statutory minimum. Therefore, the Council’s decision not to offer a discretionary scheme for carers does not amount to fault, and it is not required to issue a bus pass for Ms Y’s carers.
9. I recognise the statutory minimum does not provide concessionary travel for carers of disabled people and this has impacted Ms Y. If Ms X believes the statutory minimum is discriminatory, she may raise this issue with central government or take legal advice.

Back to top

Final decision

10. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision not to issue bus passes for Ms Y’s care workers.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman