Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s response to anti-social behaviour he is experiencing. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to lead to a worthwhile outcome for Mr X.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council has failed to appropriately respond to complaints of anti-social behaviour he has made regarding his next-door neighbour.
2. Mr X said he has been caused distress and upset by the situation and the Council’s actions.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate 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 or continue an investigation if we decide:

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr X has made several complaints over the years regarding abusive and anti-social behaviour he has experienced due to his neighbour.
7. The Council has responded to the complaints by holding a community trigger meeting, liaising with the Police, and sending letters to the neighbour in question. The Council has also met with the neighbour and Mr X in person and offered to mediate but this has not resolved the issues.
8. Mr X remains unhappy with the situation and most recently reports that his neighbour has attempted to seriously physically assault him. The Council has not investigated this latest issue as there are ongoing legal proceedings related to this incident.
9. Mr X wants us to find the Council at fault. Having reviewed the evidence provided by the Council and Mr X, I consider it unlikely an investigation would achieve anything worthwhile for Mr X. The severity of the behaviour reported by Mr X amounts to abuse and harassment and it beyond the Council’s scope to deal with. The Council has attempted to address the issues with the actions listed above but this is clearly a civil issue and a matter better addressed by the police.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because an investigation would be unlikely to provide a worthwhile outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman