Summary: Mrs X complains about a lack of transparency in the Council documentation about council tax charges. We will not investigate as it is unlikely we will find fault by the Council, or that we can add to what the Council has already said.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council’s council tax documentation is not transparent in respect of a precept she has to pay for a local charity. Mrs X is concerned about how the money she pays for council tax is being spent. Mrs X also complains about the Council’s handling of her complaint about this.

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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’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault, or it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or the claimed injustice is not sufficient to warrant our involvement (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have considered what Mrs X said in her complaint and I have sent her my draft decision on it for her comments. I have considered any comments Mrs X made in response in reaching this final decision.

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What I found

4. Mrs X pays a council tax precept for a local charity of around £50 a year. Mrs X is concerned about where this money is spent and says that documents the Council publishes do not explain this.
5. Mrs X complained to the Council and is unhappy as it has told her it cannot say what the precept is spent on. Mrs X is also unhappy that the Council did not advise her properly about its complaints procedure in that she could escalate her complaint if she was not satisfied with its first response.
6. The charity in question was set up by an act of Parliament to protect an area of land, local to Mrs X. Its costs are met by a council tax levy on residents of four parishes in the area, by way of a council tax precept.

Analysis

7. I do not consider it is fault for the Council to advise Mrs X to contact the charity direct, about its spending. The charity has the power to raise money via the council tax precept. The Council then collects this via the council tax bills it issues. The Council has no control over the rate of the precept or what the charity spends the money on.
8. I do not consider the injustice caused to Mrs X, from how the Council dealt with her complaint is sufficient to warrant our involvement.
9. For these reasons, we will not investigate.

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Final decision

10. My decision is we will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council in respect of its response to her queries about the council tax precept. How the Council dealt with Mrs X’s complaint does not cause her a level of injustice that would warrant our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman