Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs B’s complaint about her housing application. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault in the way the Council has reached its decision on the current priority banding for the application.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs B, complained that the Council has failed to give her housing application sufficient priority, failed to consider properly all the medical information they provided and misled and misinformed her. Mrs B told us the health of members of her household is significantly adversely affected by their current accommodation and a move could improve it.

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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 or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

3. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered the information Mrs B provided including the Council’s Housing Needs Register and Allocations Scheme. I have given Mrs B an opportunity to comment on my draft decision.

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What I found

5. The Council’s allocations scheme explains how it gives reasonable preference to certain applicants, including those living in overcrowded accommodation and those who need to move for medical reasons. The Council must allocate its social housing in accordance with its allocations scheme. It prioritises applications by band and then by priority date (usually the date applicants joined the housing needs register). Band 1 is the highest priority band and Band 4 the lowest. The Council will place applications in Band 2 if the applicant meets at least one of the criteria it lists for that band. For example, it will award Band 2 priority it if has made a composite health award or it has identified a category one hazard in the applicant’s home because of a lack of two or more bedrooms. It will award Band 3 priority if the applicant meets a least two of its listed criteria. These criteria include if it has made a significant health and housing award and the household has fewer bedrooms than it needs according to its housing needs register bedroom standard.
6. The Council makes a composite health award if a member of the household has a severe long-term limiting illness and their health and quality of life is severely affected by the home they currently live in. Alternatively, if there are a number of household members with health conditions which, when taken together, meet its criteria, the Council can make a composite health award. The Council has explained to Mrs B it does not make a composite health award simply if the applicant has provided information about more than one condition or illness for an individual household member or for more than one person in the household. The Council said it is the severity of the illnesses which is crucial.
7. The Council makes a significant health and housing award if the health of the applicant and/or a member of their household is being seriously affected by their current housing and would improve if they move.
8. In 2015 the Council placed Mrs B’s application in Band 3 because of the multiple needs of their household. In 2018 the Council considered the banding of Mrs B’s application after receiving medical information about a household member. The Council said it had placed the application in Band 3 after considering the information. But Mrs B says her application was already in Band 3. The Council reviewed the banding in July 2019 after receiving more information about household members. It did not change the banding.
9. Following the Council’s review, Mrs B made a formal complaint. In its final response to Mrs B’s complaint the Council said it had considered all the information she provided in support of her application. It listed the information it had received. The Council’s decision was the problems her family are suffering are significant but they did not meet the threshold to be considered severe.
10. The main issue in Mrs B’s complaint is whether the Council has properly considered whether her application is in the correct priority band. A complaint to the Ombudsman is not the same as an appeal against a council decision on the priority of a housing application. We have no powers to overrule the Council’s decision. Our role is to look the Council’s decision-making process. The Council has acknowledged the family’s housing needs by placing their application in Band 3 rather than Band 4. It has considered all of the supporting information Mrs B provided but it decided the family’s problems do not meet the severity threshold to justify a composite health award. In those circumstances we cannot question whether the Council’s decision is right or wrong.
11. Mrs B has criticised the Council for giving her misleading information about the rehousing prospects for Band 3 applicants. The Council has agreed it should not be raising false expectations with applicants. It has given Mrs B what it considers is a realistic assessment of her application in writing. There is nothing significant we could now achieve by pursuing this part of Mrs B’s complaint.

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Final decision

12. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault in the way the Council has reached its decision on the current priority banding for Mrs B’s application.

Investigator’s final decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman