Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to do work to a tree. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Ms X, complains about the Council’s decision not to prune or remove a tree outside her home.

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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 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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence, photographs of the tree (from the internet) and the Council’s tree policy. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. There is a tree outside Ms X’s home which she says is dangerous, too tall and causes a nuisance through leaf fall. She says it poses a risk to her house and she wants the Council to remove it and replace it with a smaller tree that does not drop leaves. Ideally Ms X would like the Council to fell the tree and not replace it. Ms X says she has been asking for tree work since 2022 but the Council has ignored her. Ms X says the Council has not checked the tree or done any maintenance or pollarding.
5. In response the Council told Ms X it inspects street trees every three years. At the last inspection the tree was found to be in a good condition and posed a low risk. It said the next inspection is due in 2025. The Council explained that tall trees are not necessarily dangerous and unnecessary work can damage a tree. It noted that tree work does not always mean the height of a tree is reduced.
6. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council inspected the tree and decided no work is currently needed. This was a decision it was entitled to make and reflects the tree policy which says the Council will only do necessary tree work to reduce risk to an acceptable level. In this case tree officers found the tree poses a low risk. It is not wrong for a council to follow the professional advice of tree officers.
7. I have seen photographs of the tree from 2008 to 2021. These show the Council inspects the tree and does work when needed. There is an image showing the Council pollarded the tree in 2019.
8. I appreciate Ms X disagrees with the Council’s assessment of the tree and remains of the view that action is needed. But, that disagreement is not an indication of fault and there are no grounds to start an investigation. In addition, we are not tree officers and cannot assess the condition of a tree or tell the Council it must disregard the findings of its tree officers.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman