Summary: Mr X complained on behalf of his mother, Mrs Y. He complained people are parking dangerously on his mother’s road which is causing her distress. The Council was not at fault.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained on behalf of his mother, Mrs Y. He complained people are parking dangerously on his mother’s road which is causing her distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in the decision making, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a Council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read Mr X’s complaint and spoke to him about it on the phone.
5. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
6. Mr X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Background information

7. The Highways Act 1980 defines a private road is any highway that is not maintained at public expense.
8. A private road is not adopted by the highways department and the Council is not responsible for maintaining the road.
9. Interfering with a right of way is a civil matter and would need to be considered by a court. The courts considered a case about deliberate obstruction of a private road, accompanied by verbal abuse over a long period of time. Horne and Horne v. Ball [1995] CLY 1841
10. Councils have a general duty to take action to tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB). But ASB can take many different forms; and Councils should make informed decisions about which of their powers is most appropriate for any given situation.
11. Councils and the police can issue Community Protection Notices (CPN) to prevent anti-social behaviour which is having a negative effect on the community's quality of life, and which they decide is unreasonable. CPNs require the behaviour to stop and, where appropriate, require the recipient to take reasonable steps to ensure it is not repeated. Failure to comply is an offence, and may result in a fine or a fixed penalty notice.

What happened

12. This is a summary of events, outlining key facts and does not cover everything that has occurred in this case.
13. Following an incident with a neighbour outside Mrs Y’s property, Mr X had involved the police. The police directed Mr X to the Council about the parking issues on the road. Mr X complained to the Council in November 2022. He complained about the antisocial parking on the road Mrs Y’s lives on. He explained the road is narrow and cars needed to park on the pavement to enable other cars to pass. He stated the Council had told him the road was private but had not explained who owned it.
14. The Council responded in December 2022. The Council informed Mr X the road was not a public highway, it was a private road so the highways department had no responsibility for the road. The response added, if Mr X wanted to complain to the anti-social behaviour service, the Council would consider vehicle related nuisance but not parking disputes. The Council directed Mr X to the police if he had any more disputes about parking.
15. Mr X requested the Council escalate his complaint to stage two. He said the street and houses were built by the Council. He continued houses had been sold off over time but Mrs Y had not been informed of changes to the road ownership. Mr X wanted the Council to adopt the road as a public highway.
16. The Council responded to the stage two complaint in February 2023. It confirmed the road is private and it was not within the powers of the highways department to dictate parking on a private road. It added all disputes about parking would be a civil matter between the neighbours. Any issues about parking would be for the police.
17. Mr X responded to the Council to ask who owned the road. He informed the Council one of the properties on the road was still Council owned.
18. The Council responded to Mr X’s comment that one house was still Council owned. The Council informed Mr X it had consulted with its housing department and confirmed the housing department owned the road.
19. Mr X was not satisfied with the Council’s response and has asked the Ombudsman to investigate. Mr X would like the Council to adopt the road as a public highway and apply parking restrictions.
20. In response to my enquiries the Council stated its housing department does own the road. It is classified as a private road as it is not a public highway. The response confirmed it would not implement restrictions as the housing department could not enforce any parking restrictions.

My findings

21. Mrs Y’s road is not a public highway. It is a private road under legislation, although it belongs to the Council housing department. The Council has decided not to apply parking restrictions as it cannot enforce them. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. The Council is entitled to make this decision provided it has taken into account relevant issues and there is no evidence of fault in the way the decision was reached.
22. The Council advised Mr X it would consider any complaints made about anti-social behaviour by Mrs Y’s neighbours but would not consider parking related matters as this would need to be dealt with by the police. Case law has set out matters of this kind are a civil matter between neighbours. Such disputes are for the courts to decide and not a matter the Ombudsman can make a decision on.

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Final decision

23. I have completed my investigation. I have not found fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman