Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Ms Z’s complaints that the Council has been changing her position on the list for properties she bids on, ignoring her evidence of housing need, and discriminating against her by advising her to bid on flats. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to justify an Ombudsman investigation.

The complaint

1. Ms Z complains the Council has:
1. been changing her position in the list for properties on which she has bid;
2. ignored assessments saying she urgently needs to be rehoused due to her and her family’s medical conditions and the state of disrepair in her current property;
3. told her to bid for flats when she has provided evidence to show a flat will not be suitable, which she considers was unfair and discriminatory.
2. Ms Z says the Council’s fault has prevented her moving from her current property, which is making the health of her family worse. She wants the Council to provide her with new accommodation.

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’.
4. 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 (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A (6), as amended)
5. 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

6. I considered the complaint made by Ms Z, the correspondence she exchanged with the Council and her response to my draft decision.

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What I found

7. The Council’s housing allocation policy has three bands. People in Band 3 are those with medical needs, or who live in insanitary housing, or in accommodation in a state of disrepair. Bands 1 and 2 are for people needing emergency housing, or who need to move because their current housing is being demolished.
8. Ms Z says she needs to move because of her and her children’s medical conditions and the state of her property. This means Ms Z meets the criteria for individuals under Band 3. I have not seen evidence to show the Council has ignored Ms Z’s family’s medical conditions, or the condition of her property.
   Ms Z’s current priority in Band 3 takes those issues into account.
9. The Council explained to Ms Z in response to her complaint that an applicant’s bidding position will change from when they first place a bid as and when any other applicant with higher priority than her places a bid on the same property. That is how the bidding scheme works. Someone bidding first on a property does not mean they will secure it. Everyone who has bid will be ranked using their priority to decide who gets offered it. I have not seen evidence that the way the Council processed Ms Z’s bids involved fault.
10. Ms X says the Council told her she could only bid on flats. I have not seen evidence the Council has told Ms Z that she can only bid on flats. From the information I have seen, the Council advised Ms Z that she should consider bidding for flats as well as houses, because this may result in her being rehoused sooner. That is not fault or discriminatory.

The Council says the various assessments it has done on Ms Z’s application confirm she needs a property with level access. The Council has considered Ms Z’s preference for a house and the reasons why she says she does not want a flat. But officers have made a professional judgement that the reasons given do not mean she should only bid for houses. That is a judgement they were entitled to take. I have not seen evidence of fault in that assessment by officers which would warrant an Ombudsman investigation.

11. I understand Ms Z has given the Council more information about her family’s health conditions. If so, it is for the Council’s officers to consider that information and decide whether it alters Ms Z’s housing priority.
12. I note one of the reasons Ms Z gives for wanting to move is because of disrepair to her current property which was confirmed by the surveyor. Ms Z rents the property from a housing association landlord. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this part of her complaint about the condition of her property because housing associations are not within our jurisdiction. Ms Z may wish to complain about any disrepair to her landlord first, and then to the Housing Ombudsman if she disagrees with the outcome of that complaint.

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Final decision

13. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council which warrants an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman