Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council did not inform her about the start of its green waste subscription service. This is because the matter complained about has not caused Mrs X any significant personal injustice which is so serious that it warrants a further investigation by this office.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains the Council failed to inform her in advance of it starting its optional green waste subscription service. She says it has not taken responsibility for her not receiving a mailshot in advance of the change and it will not offer a pro-rata rate for the remainder of the subscription period. Mrs X says she is unable to dispose of her green waste via alternative methods as she is over 80 years old. She says the Council is being unfair and unreasonable.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect 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 an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Councils are not legally required to provide a garden waste service. In March 2025, the Council moved to an optional service to collect garden waste. This is paid for via an annual subscription service which costs £62 per year. The terms and conditions of the subscription service are published on the Council’s website. It states the full subscription fee applies even if the subscription starts part way through the year.
6. Mrs X complained to the Council that she was not aware it had moved to an optional subscription service until three months after it started, when the Council placed a sticker on her bin. She asked the Council to allow her to pay a pro-rata rate for the rest of the subscription year or to carry out a one-off collection of her garden waste which she has been unable to dispose of.
7. The Council said it informed residents of the upcoming change via Royal Mail leaflet drops, social media, community magazines and email shots. It placed stickers on bins for residents who had not been able to access the other methods it used.
8. Mrs X said she does not permanently reside in her property and did not receive a leaflet in the post. She only became aware of it when the sticker was placed on her bin.
9. The Council told Mrs X it would not collect her green waste without her subscribing and that there is no reduction for subscribing partway through the subscription period.
10. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint. This is because the matter complained about has not caused Mrs X any significant personal injustice which is so serious that it warrants the use of limited public funds to carry out a further investigation. We do not investigate every complaint we receive, and we must focus our limited public resources on investigating those complaints where a person has suffered a significant personal injustice as a result of fault by a body in our jurisdiction. This is not the case here. Had the Council agreed, outside of its terms and conditions, to a reduced pro-rata rate this would have represented a reduction in the annual £62 charge of approximately £20. This is a relatively modest sum and does not warrant the use of limited public resources for us to carry out an investigation.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because the matter complained about has not caused Mrs X any significant personal injustice which is so serious that it warrants a further investigation by this office.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman