Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s failure to maintain outdoor areas close to his home. Further investigation by us would not lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has failed to maintain and mow areas of grass close to his home.
2. Mr X says the area looks unsightly and is attracting fly-tipping.

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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:

• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

(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 the complainant.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr X complained the Council had not mowed areas of grass close to his home despite him asking it to on various occasions.
7. In response to his complaint, the Council apologised and explained its teams had limited capacity due to staffing issues and theft of its equipment.
8. It also agreed to prioritise the area for grass mowing and said it would refer Mr X’s fly-tipping concerns to the relevant team.
9. The Council’s response appears reasonable, and the Ombudsman could not achieve significantly more than this by investigating. For this reason, we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because further investigation by us would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman