Middlesbrough Borough Council (21 011 158)
Category : Environment and regulation > Trees
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 26 Nov 2021
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to remove a tree. This is because there is no evidence of fault on the Council’s part.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I will refer to as Mrs B, complains that the Council is at fault in declining to remove a tree which has caused damage to her property.
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 effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Council’s Tree Policy.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs B says a tree owned by the Council caused damage to her boundary wall. She says the Council accepted liability and removed the root which had caused the damage. However, she complains that it has declined to remove the tree. She says it should do so to prevent it causing damage in future,
- The Ombudsman will not investigate the complaint because there is no evidence of fault on the Council’s part. It is for the Council to interpret and apply its Tree Policy. It has said it has inspected the tree and found no grounds to remove it.
- Mrs B disagrees with the decision not to remove the tree, but that does not mean there is fault in the way it was made. Without evidence of fault, it is not for the Ombudsman to criticise the professional judgement of the officer who made the decision, or intervene to substitute an alternative view.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs B’s complaint because there is no evidence of fault on the Council’s part.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman