Manchester City Council (24 015 700)
Category : Benefits and tax > Housing benefit and council tax benefit
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 10 Feb 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about housing benefit and Council tax decisions because there is a right of appeal to a Tribunal.
The complaint
- Mr X complains that his housing benefit and Council tax support has repeatedly been suspended or stopped.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone has a right of appeal, reference or review to a tribunal about the same matter. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to use this right. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
- The Valuation Tribunal deals with appeals against decisions on council tax liability and council tax support or reduction.
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X says that his housing benefit and Council tax support have repeatedly been suspended or stopped since 2024. He says that he has had to provide evidence each time to support his claim.
- The Council wrote to him in January 2026 with a final decision on his housing benefit and Council tax support based upon his income. The Council also told him that an overpayment of benefit had occurred which was to be recovered.
- The Council said it would review its decisions if Mr X contested them and it would forward his request to a tribunal if the review was not successful.
- The tribunal is an independent body which can determine any dispute about such decisions. I see no reason why an appeal (following review) could not be made in this case and so the complaint is out of jurisdiction.
- I appreciate that Mr X has struggled with the Council’s previous decisions about entitlement but only a tribunal can determine whether he has a right to the benefits; not the Ombudsman.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he has a right of appeal to a tribunal.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman