Summary: Miss X complained about mould and disrepair in her council home and the two-bedroom flat she occupies is too small for her family. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the repair and management of her home by a social housing landlord are outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction. There is insufficient evidence of fault to investigate her complaint about her banding on the housing waiting list.

The complaint

1. Miss X says the council property which she lives in is badly affected by mould and makes it difficult for her family to live there. She does not want to be decanted to temporary accommodation while repair work is carried out and wants a permanent move to three-bedroomed accommodation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. 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 all the information which Miss X submitted with her complaint. I have also considered the Council’s response. Miss X has been given an opportunity to comment on a draft copy of my decision.

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What I found

5. Miss X says her Council home has been affected by mould and dampness since 2019. She has complained to the Council about the effects on her family’s health and her possessions and also the fact that she is overcrowded. She has three children and one of the bedrooms is only the size of a boxroom.
6. The Council told Miss X that it is prepared to carry out work to provide additional ventilation and mould treatment, but it may involve her having to move out temporarily. Miss X says she wants to move permanently to a three-bedroomed home and not have to return to an overcrowded flat.
7. Miss X is currently in Band B on the waiting list and there may be 300 other applicants in similar circumstances, some with longer waiting time on the list.

Analysis

8. We cannot consider complaints about disrepair or the decant offered by her social housing landlord. These matters fall within the remit of the Housing Ombudsman service. We can consider Miss X complaint about her banding on the allocations list.
9. Miss X is in the correct banding for someone who is living in overcrowded circumstances and it is clear there are others in similar situations. The Ombudsman may not find fault with a council’s assessment of a housing applicant’s priority if it has carried this out in line with its published allocations scheme. We recognise that the demand for social housing far outstrips the supply of properties in many areas. We may not find fault with a council for failing to re-house someone, if it has prioritised applicants and allocated properties according to its published lettings scheme policy.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because the repair and management of her home by a social housing landlord are outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction. There is insufficient evidence of fault to investigate her complaint about her banding on the housing waiting list.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman