Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about some trees because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council causing injustice.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council pruned some trees in an important public space.

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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, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

(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 Mr X and the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. The Council inspected some trees in a public space and decided to prune them. It notified residents and slightly delayed starting the work to answer enquiries. The trees have been pruned.
5. Mr X raised several complaints; these included a lack of consultation, that the work was unnecessary, failure to follow good practice, and breaches of health and safety rules.
6. The Council explained its tree officers had inspected the trees and found that work was needed. It said the work will protect the trees in the future. The Council addressed Mr X’s questions which included comments about bats, and explaining why it decided to close the road during the work. The Council said it was relatively minor work that did not need a consultation.
7. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The main issue is that the Council decided to prune the trees. The trees were inspected by tree officers who decided work was needed. I appreciate Mr X disagrees with that assessment, but it is not fault for a council to follow the professional judgement of tree officers. We are not tree officers and cannot say whether the trees needed pruning. The Council says some of the trees had decayed to the point of failure and the work will help to protect their health in the future.
8. The Council addressed most of Mr X’s points and, whilst he continues to dispute its response, I have not seen anything to suggest we need to start an investigation. In addition, while I acknowledge Mr X’s strength of feeling about the pruning, in relation to his other points there is nothing to suggest he has been caused an injustice which requires an investigation.

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Final decision

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

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman