Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the way the Council has dealt with Mr X in connection with various anti-social behaviour issues. This is because some events happened too far in the past to be investigated now and, with regard more recent events, we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council sufficient to warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to as Mr X, says the Council has deliberately harassed and hounded him and suppressed evidence concerning anti-social behaviour (ASB) towards him involving issues such as fly-tipping and noise nuisance. He also says the Council was wrong to take him to an ASB Panel and that its actions have been affected by politics and those who have close contacts within the Council.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
3. The Ombudsman investigates 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 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, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council, including its responses to his complaint under its complaints procedure.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr X complained to the Council about a variety of issues concerning the ASB of others directed towards him and about his own treatment by the Council. He raised issues involving fly-tipping, dogs and park wardens, the ASB Panel held which concerned his own behaviour, noise nuisance and threats made by his neighbour towards him. The Council responded to these issues in detail but, apart from some minor issues, did not uphold his complaint.
7. Having read the detail of Mr X’s complaints, and the Council’s responses to them, I note a number of them concern events which happened too far in the past to be investigated by us now and there is insufficient evidence of fault to warrant exercising discretion to do so. With regards to more recent events and issues, I have seen no evidence to suggest there has been fault by the Council in its handling of these matters and an investigation is unlikely to find evidence of significant fault or lead to a different outcome.
8. Mr X has provided no evidence to support his allegations of political/personal interference at the Council.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because some events happened too far in the past to be investigated now and, with regard more recent events, we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council sufficient to warrant an investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman