Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the complainant’s priority on the housing register. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, says she should be in band one on the housing register.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I read the complaint and the Council’s response. I considered the housing allocation policy and invited Ms X to comment on a draft of this decision.

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What I found

Housing allocations policy

4. The Council places people in bands on the housing register to help it determine priority for housing. Band one is the top band. The Council places people in band three if they are overcrowded. The Council places people in band two, for medical reasons, if the current accommodation seriously affects the health of someone in the family and the conditions in the property cannot be resolved.

What happened

5. Ms X lives in a studio flat with her child. The Council placed her in band three due to overcrowding. She is registered for a two bedroom home.
6. Ms X says she should be in band one. She has explained that her son has asthma and is affected by damp and mould in the flat. She says the mould is partly caused by having to dry clothes inside. She wants a house with a garden because that would be better for her son’s health. She sent the Council a letter from the school saying her son is being affected by the lack of space and the damp.
7. The Council confirmed that Ms X is in the correct band.

Assessment

8. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.
9. Ms X needs a larger home and I do not doubt that the conditions affect both Ms X and her son. However, this is recognised by the band three for overcrowding. In addition, while her son has asthma, to qualify for band two on medical grounds Ms X would have to show that the conditions seriously affect his health and that the damp cannot be resolved. The medical evidence is not consistent with a band two award and damp is in issue that Ms X should resolve as a disrepair issue with the landlord. There is nothing to suggest Ms X satisfies the qualifying conditions for band one.
10. In addition, while I can understand why Ms X would like a garden, the severe shortage of social housing means this may not be possible and it is not provided for as a guarantee in the allocations policy.
11. I appreciate Ms X would like to be in a higher band. However, the Ombudsman does not act as an appeal body and he cannot direct the Council to increase Ms X’s priority on the housing register.

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Final decision

12. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman