Summary: Mr and Mrs X complain the Council has failed to award local connection priority on their housing application. The Council has considered information presented about a local connection but the evidence does not meet the criteria set out in the Council’s lettings policy. There is no evidence of fault in how the Council dealt with Mr and Mrs X’s housing application.

The complaint

1. Mr and Mrs X complain the Council have failed to determine that they have a local connection in respect of their housing application.
2. Mr and Mrs X say they need to move due to her health problems and the delay is causing distress.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. 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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. As part of the investigation, I have:
• considered the complaint and the documents provided by the complainant;
• made enquiries of the Council and considered the comments and documents the Council provided;
• discussed the issues with the complainant;
• sent my draft decision to both the Council and the complainant and invited their comments.

Back to top

What I found

6. Mr and Mrs X currently live in the North East of England. Mrs X has experienced serious health issues and would like to live nearer to family members.
7. Mr and Mrs X applied to join the housing register in Lincoln in 2018. They started the online application process in August 2018. They submitted the application to the Council in September 2018. The Council wrote to Mr and Mrs on 1 October seeking further information in support of their application. The Council asked them to provide details of family members living in the Lincoln area as well as the address history for the previous five years. The Council says Mr and Mrs X did not provide the information requested within 28 days, so it cancelled the application in November.
8. Mr and Mrs X did make contact with the Council in November and so it agreed to open the housing application again. After Mr and Mrs X provided further details in support of their application, it was approved on 11 December 2018.
9. Mr and Mrs X are able to place bids on available properties. The Council’s lettings policy gives greater priority to applicants with a local connection. Mr and Mrs X say that because they are not considered to have a local connection, the are unlikely to be allocated a property.
10. The Council’s policy states that to qualify for a local connection the applicant must provide evidence that demonstrates:
• They are currently resident in the area and have been for at least the last six months;
• They have previously lived in the area for a continuous period of 12 months in the last five years;
• They have immediate family members who are currently resident in the area. Family members are defined as parents or guardians, adult children or brothers or sisters who have lived in that area continuously for the last five years; or
• Their current main place of permanent work in the arear for a continuous period of 12 months.
11. Mrs X was living with her Aunt in Lincoln from October 2018 until May 2019. Mr X told me that she provided the Council with copies of bank statements showing the different address. A period of six months resident in Lincoln would qualify Mrs X for a local connection. The Council says that bank statements are not evidence of someone living at a particular address as you can have a bank account registered at any address. I have not seen anything to suggest Mrs X provided other evidence to the Council to show her residence in Lincoln.
12. Mr and Mrs X have provided evidence of relatives living in the local area. Some of the family members live in areas other than Lincoln and so this does not make them eligible for the local connection priority. They have also provided evidence of cousins living in Lincoln but the policy does not give local connection priority for cousins.
13. When I spoke to Mr X he told me he had a brother living in Lincoln and he had recently provided evidence of this to the Council. A brother living in Lincoln for the past five years would meet the criteria for local connection priority. In response to my enquiries the Council said it had not received any evidence from Mr and Mrs X about a brother.

Analysis

14. Mr and Mrs X have been accepted onto the housing register and are able to place bids on available properties. As they only joined the register in December 2018 the bids they place are not successful. They believe they would have more chance of being allocated a property if they could show a local connection and if they had higher priority.
15. I am satisfied the Council has considered if Mr and Mrs X have a local connection to Lincoln and based on the information provided have determined they do not.
16. The Council’s policy clearly sets out the criteria to meet to be awarded local connection priority. Mrs X lived in Lincoln for a period of time until May 2019. There is nothing to suggest she provided evidence to the Council to demonstrate she was in Lincoln for a continuous period of six months.
17. Information the Council has seen about family members has not demonstrated a local connection. Information relating to a sister and mother of Mr and Mrs X shows they do not live in Lincoln but in nearby areas. Evidence of relatives living in Lincoln is for cousins and the policy only gives priority for specified family members and this does not include cousins.
18. Mr X says he has provided evidence of a brother but the Council says it has not received it. I have not seen anything to show Mr X has provided such evidence and so I cannot criticise the Council. However, if he has this evidence he should provide it to the Council again and ask it to consider it.
19. I appreciate Mr and Mrs X want to live in Lincoln. They are on the housing register but may have to wait a long time to be eligible for a property on the basis of their current priority. I can understand their frustration but I have not seen any evidence to suggest fault by the Council in not awarding local connection priority.

Back to top

Final decision

20. I will now complete my investigation as there is no evidence of fault.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman