Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s failure to take enforcement action against breaches of planning and building regulations by her neighbour. We have not seen enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation. Nor have we seen enough evidence of fault in the way the Council considered her requests for help as a vulnerable household. We cannot achieve the main outcome Mrs X is seeking.

The complaint

• Failed to investigate or enforce against unsafe or non-compliant works at her neighbour’s property.
• Failed to co-ordinate with the local gas suppler about gas safety risks.
• Failed to protect her as an at-risk adult according to the Care Act 2004.
• Failed to protect her children according to the Children Act; and
• Failed to make reasonable adjustments for her disability.

Mrs X wants the Council to:

• Apologise for its failures.
• Compensate her for distress hardship and loss of essential services.
• Open a building control investigation into her neighbour’s property.
• Co-ordinate with the gas company to restore her gas supply.
• Protect her access and easement rights over her neighbour’s property for gas apparatus.
• Meet equality and safeguarding duties; and
• Implement service improvements.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

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

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How I considered this complaint

I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.

I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

• Planning permission for the neighbour’s building work was granted by the Planning Inspector, not the Council.
• Breaches of Mrs X’s rights for drainage and gas supply is a private civil matter between Mrs X and her neighbour and not something the Council can resolve.
• The gas company has offered to provide Mrs X with her own gas supply through the front of her property. Mrs X has refused this arrangement and requires her supply to be routed through her neighbour’s property.
• It offered to refer Mrs X to the local energy partnership who may be able to help her.
• It has no powers to reconnect her gas supply.
• It referred her case to the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub who has contacted her and decided not to take further action.
• No breaches of planning control exist at her neighbour’s property; and
• Its building control team has confirmed no further action is needed.

I understand Mrs X believes the Council should take enforcement action against her neighbour for breaches of planning or building control. However, the Council has confirmed there are no breaches of planning or building control regulations at the neighbour’s property.

Mrs X also want the Council to require the gas company to reconnect her gas supply via her neighbour’s property. The Council has no powers to require the gas company to do so.

Mrs X says under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHRS) there is a category one hazard in her home.

The HHRS is a tool used by councils to consider potential hazards in properties. Council have a legal duty to take enforcement action if they find a property has a category one hazard. However, they must take legal action against the property owner. So, if the Council inspected Mrs X’s home and found a category one hazard, they would have to take enforcement action against Mrs X as the owner requiring her to fix it.

Following her correspondence, the Council referred Mrs X to the appropriate Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub in response to the safeguarding issues she raised.

From the information I have reviewed, I have not seen a specific request from Mrs X to the Council to reasonable adjustments in the way she can access its service. However, should Mrs X require reasonable adjustments, it is for the Council to consider any request she may make, decide whether her request is reasonable and inform her of its decision.

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Final decision

• In the way the Council considered her demands that it take enforcement action against her neighbour or require the local gas supplier to reconnect her property through the neighbour’s property. It is not the Council’s role to protect her access and easement rights over her neighbour’s property for gas apparatus, this is a civil matter between Mrs X and her neighbour.
• In the way the Council considered her request for help as a vulnerable household.
• In the way the Council responded to her statement that a category one hazard exists in her home.

We cannot require the Council to liaise with the gas company to reconnect her gas supply, so we cannot achieve the main outcome Mrs X is seeking.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman