Summary: We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s decision not to progress his claim for housing benefit. This is because Mr X has appealed the decision to a tribunal.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has failed to progress his claim for housing benefit. He says this has led to him becoming homeless. He wants the Council to pay him housing benefit.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate a complaint if someone has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. We also cannot investigate a complaint if in doing so we would overlap with the role of a tribunal to decide something which has been or could have been referred to it to resolve using its own powers. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Social Entitlement Chamber (also known as the Social Security Appeal Tribunal) is a tribunal that considers housing benefit appeals. (The Social Entitlement Chamber of the First Tier Tribunal)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. In its complaint response, the Council said during its assessment of his housing benefit application it had requested further information from Mr X, but he had failed to provide it. Because of this, it had not approved his application. It acknowledged he had requested to appeal the decision and agreed to refer his case to the tribunal.
8. We cannot Mr X’s complaint as he has appealed to a tribunal about the same matter. Mr X can raise any disagreement with the Council’s decision making as part of his appeal.

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Final decision

9. We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint because he has appealed the Council’s decision to the tribunal.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman