Summary: Ms X complains the Council was at fault in the way it considered her application to join its housing register in 2018. The Ombudsman has found no evidence of fault in the way the Council considered the matter. So, has completed his investigation.

The complaint

1. The complainant whom I shall refer to as Ms X complains the Council failed to take account of her circumstances when refusing her application for its housing register causing her stress and anxiety.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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

4. I have read the papers submitted by Ms X and spoken to her about the complaint. I considered the Council’s comments on the complaint and the supporting documents it provided. I have explained my draft decision to Ms X and the Council and considered the comments received.

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What I found

5. Ms X lives in another Council area. She applied to the City Council in March 2018 for a place on its housing register as she wished to be offered a property in Birmingham.
6. The Council considered Ms X’s application under its Housing Allocation Scheme (Scheme) in place at the time. The sections of the Scheme relevant to the complaint refer to the need for an applicant to have a local connection to the Council’s area to be eligible for the housing register. The Council establishes local connection by:
• The person having lived in the Council’s area out of choice for the last 12 months.
• Evidence the person has a continuing caring responsibility for someone living in the area.
• The person is employed or has evidence of a job offer in the area.
• Evidence the person is due to carry out training or further education in the area lasting for at least six months.
• If the person is in Foster care, a care leaver or in the Armed Forces the Council will consider them under a separate criterion in the Scheme.
7. Under the Council’s Scheme it will look at exceptional circumstances where it is necessary to reconsider the qualification criteria for individual applicants who would not normally qualify. The Scheme says there needs to be extreme exceptional circumstances, for example a threat to life and no other housing options are available.
8. The Council told Ms X it considered she had no local connection so did not qualify to join the housing register.
9. Ms X sent a review request of the Council’s decision. Ms X explained she had been subject to domestic abuse. Ms X included information from a charity confirming her circumstances and an assessment it carried out. The charity considered Ms X medium risk after a recent incident. The charity said Ms X felt unsafe in her property, so it offered her refuge, but Ms X declined.
10. The Council considered the review request and looked at Ms X’s application form, her emails and information from the charity. It advised Ms X to contact the housing advice centre for advice and help over the alleged domestic abuse. The Council said it upheld the original decision to disqualify her from the housing register as she had no established local connection. And none of the exceptions applied to her.
11. In November 2018, central government issued a new directive to enable Council’s to use discretion to make exceptions to policy for victims of domestic abuse who may be applying for social housing. The Council adopted the policy.
12. Ms X made a new housing register application to the Council in January 2019 and gave supporting information about her circumstances in February 2019. The Council assessed her application in April 2019 in line with its Scheme and the new government directive. The Council made an exception to the local connection criterion in Ms X’s case and allowed her to join the housing register. The Council awarded Ms X’s application band 2 for a threat of abuse, violence or harassment.

My assessment

13. Ms X disagrees with the Council’s decision about her housing register application in 2018 but the decision is a matter of officers’ professional judgement. The Ombudsman cannot question the merits of the decision itself without evidence of fault in the way it was made. I do not consider there is fault in this case.
14. This is because the documents I have seen show officers considered the Council’s Housing Allocations Scheme and information submitted by Ms X in her original application. Officers then considered the information further, the Scheme and supporting documents from the Charity. The officers considered Ms X had no local connection. Or that her circumstances should be an exception to the policy. These are decisions the officers are entitled to make. There is no evidence of fault in the way the Council reached this decision from the documents I have seen.
15. The Council considered Ms X’s new application in January 2019 and the government’s directive enabled the Council to exercise discretion. The documents show the Council took account of the new directive, Ms X’s circumstances and allowed her to join the housing register.

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Final decision

16. I am completing my investigation. I have found no fault by the Council in the way it considered Ms X’s application to join the housing register in 2018.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman