Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council (25 026 507)
Category : Environment and regulation > Other
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 11 Feb 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council handled Mr X’s environmental health concerns. There is no evidence to suggest Mr X has suffered a significant injustice which would warrant our involvement.
The complaint
- Mr X complained the Council did not properly consider concerns he had about a business after it carried out a food hygiene inspection. Mr X raised concerns about food hygiene and pest issues. Mr X said he had told the Council about these concerns previously.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X complained to the Council after it carried out a food hygiene inspection in September 2025 and gave the business a positive rating. Mr X said the rating was inaccurate given he had evidence of pest issues.
- The Council carried out follow up visits and explained its findings and decisions to Mr X.
- We will not normally investigate a complaint unless there is good reason to believe the complainant has suffered significant personal injustice as a direct result of the actions or inactions of the Council.
- While Mr X’s concerns are acknowledged, the available evidence does not suggest he has suffered a significant injustice because of the Council’s actions.
- Because of this, we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is no evidence to suggest Mr X has suffered a significant injustice which would warrant our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman