Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to carry out works to a tree. There is insufficient evidence of fault in the way the Council made its decision.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mr X, complains that the Council has unreasonably declined to take action to pollard a tree close to his home, and has failed to respond appropriately to his complaint.

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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 or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), section 34(B))
3. We will not usually investigate complaint handling if we are not investigating the rest of the complaint. This is because there is not usually enough injustice to justify us doing so. We collect information about particularly poor complaint handling practice and report this back to organisations. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), section 34B(8))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. Mr X asked the Council to pollard a highway tree close to his home. He says the tree presents a risk to his property. He complains that the Council has declined to carry out the work, which he believes is required to mitigate the risk.
7. The Council has declined to carry out the work Mr X has requested. It says it last inspected the tree in 2025 and found no works required. It further set out its approach to risk management and said it would reconsider the matter in the light of any evidential reports received in future.
8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint. It is not for the Ombudsman to express a view on whether works are required. That is a matter for the professional judgement of the Council’s officers in the context of its tree policy. Its position has been properly set out in response to Mr X’s complaint.
9. Mr X disagrees with the Council’s position. But that does not mean it amounts to fault. Without evidence of fault in the way officers reached their decision the Ombudsman cannot intervene to criticise it, or to substitute an alternative view. There is no such evidence in this case.
10. Where a complaint does not fall to be investigated, we will not normally investigate how a council has responded to it. It is not a good use of our resources to do so. That is the case here.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault on the Council’s part.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman