Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about refusal of an Exceptional Hardship Payment (EHP) because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains that the Council unreasonably refused his request for an Exceptional Hardship payment by the Council.

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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, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(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 the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X made an application for an EHP from the Council but says that the Council refused to accept this as he was not in receipt of Council tax support.
6. The Council says that its scheme is a reduction in Council tax and is restricted to those in receipt of Council tax support.
7. The Council’s scheme is discretionary and a matter for the Council as to the conditions attached to the scheme.
8. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether you disagree with the decision the organisation made.
9. I have considered the steps the organisation took to consider the issue, and the information it took account of when deciding not to provide funds for non recipients of Council tax support. There is no evidence of fault in how it took the decision and I therefore cannot question whether that decision was right or wrong.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman