Summary: Mr X complained the Council has failed to take appropriate action to either cut down or prune trees it owns. There was no fault in the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has failed to take appropriate action to either cut down or prune trees it owns. As a result, he says the trees are causing loss of light to his garden and the fallen leaves cause him additional work to clear. He also says the roots of the trees are encroaching onto his property.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I spoke to Mr X and considered his view of her complaint.
6. I read the Council’s Trees and Woodland Strategy and asked the Council for an update on actions it had taken.
7. The Council and Mr X commented on my draft decision. I considered these comments before I made my final decision.

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What I found

Council’s policy on trees

8. The Council has confirmed its policy ‘Our Trees and Woodland Strategy 2013-18’ is the current guidance it uses. This document includes guidance and information on how the Council will deal with complaints from the public about trees it owns.
9. The strategy states “Our approach will be only to remove trees that are dead, diseased, dangerous or can be proven to be linked to the damage caused to buildings… The very fact that leaves… may fall from trees… are not reasons to justify the removal of a healthy tree… Pruning is usually necessary to… abate actionable nuisance… actionable nuisance does not include pruning for light…reducing foliage cover… reducing leaf fall”.

What happened

10. Mr X’s rear garden backs onto Council owned land. Several large trees grow on the land close to Mr X’s garden boundary.
11. Mr X complained to the Council because he was unhappy with the trees. He said they were overhanging his garden which caused overshadowing and loss of light. He said the leaves fell onto his garden which meant considerable work clearing them up and moss had grown on his lawn as a result. He also said when he had a conservatory built there were numerous roots when the foundations were excavated.
12. The Council responded and said its general policy was not to remove healthy trees unless they were causing structural damage to a property. The Council said its arborist (tree specialist) had given the opinion that this was not the case. The Council said it would review the matter in winter and decide whether the branches could be thinned if appropriate.
13. Mr X remained unhappy and complained to us.
14. In its response to my enquiries, the Council stated that officers met with Mr X on 19 and 28 November 2019 to discuss the issues with the trees. The officers told Mr X on both occasions that because the trees were not causing a physical obstruction, growing in close proximity to the house or overhanging the property, it would not prune or remove them.
15. The Council said it would be willing to revisit Mr X’s property at a future date to reassess the situation.
16. Mr X sent me photographs he had taken in September 2020 which I sent to the Council for comment. The Council responded and said an officer had visited Mr X on 7 September 2020 in response to the photographs. The officer had found that although the tree growth was slightly overhanging the fence, it was minor and not causing any issues which would require the Council to prune the trees.

My findings

17. We are not an appeal body, so cannot comment on the merits of judgements and decisions made by councils in the absence of fault in the process. Our role is to review the process by which decisions are made, and, where we find fault, to determine what injustice it caused.
18. The Council acted in line with its policy. It consulted with its arborist who stated the tree was healthy and in their opinion the roots were not causing structural damage to the property. The fact the trees were dropping its leaves onto Mr X’s garden and he complained of loss of light were not appropriate reasons to fell the trees. The Council said it would review the situation in winter to see if it could thin the branches. Council officers visited twice in November 2019 and met with Mr X to explain why the Council would not take any action at this time. These were appropriate responses to the issue. There was no fault in the Council’s actions.
19. Mr X sent me photographs which I asked the Council to comment on. An officer visited Mr X’s property and said any overhanging was minimal and did not warrant pruning the trees. The officer exercised his professional judgement without fault.
20. If Mr X believes the trees have caused structural damage, it would be reasonable to pursue this in court. Therefore, I will not consider this matter further.

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Final decision

21. There was no fault in the Council’s actions. Therefore, I have completed my investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman