Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint that the Council has not provided the complainant with suitable accommodation. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, says the Council has not provided him with suitable accommodation. He has been on the housing register since 2016 but is still living in a home which is too small and unsuitable for his medical needs.

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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 letters the Council sent to Mr X about his housing registration. I also saw the medical evidence submitted by Mr X and the allocations policy. I invited Mr 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 highest band and is only for people for whom the Council has accepted a homelessness duty. The Council places people in band two if they need to move for medical reasons or if they are severely overcrowded.

What happened

5. Mr X lives in a two bedroom privately rented home with his wife and four children. He joined the housing register in 2016. In 2017 the Council gave him priority on the register for being overcrowded. In 2019 the Council awarded medical priority which it backdated to April 2018. Since 2018 Mr X has been in band two for medical reasons and with a recommendation that he needs level access accommodation.
6. The Council has given Mr X advice about how he can approach his landlord regarding the damp and mould in the flat.
7. Mr X complains that the Council has not provided him with suitable accommodation even though the flat is making his health worse and he has been applying for housing since 2016.

Assessment

8. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. Mr X needs a larger home and one that is better suited to his health needs. However, Mr X is in the highest possible band for someone who is not an accepted homeless applicant. Mr X is ineligible for band one because the Council has not accepted a homeless duty towards him.
9. I appreciate Mr X has been on the register since 2016 but there is a severe shortage of social housing and it can take many years for someone to make a successful bid for housing. In addition, the Council can only offer housing in accordance with the policy. This means it will offer a property to Mr X if he applies for a home and is the applicant for that property with the highest priority.

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Final decision

10. 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