Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision that the complainant cannot join 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, disagrees with the Council’s decision that she cannot join the housing register. Ms X wants the Council to approve her application.

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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 responses. 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

Allocation policy

4. People can join the housing register if they have priority for housing as defined by the allocation policy. People will have priority if there is damp in their home which arises from a structural issue which cannot be repaired. People are expected to arrange for repairs when there are problems of disrepair.
5. The Council awards medical priority to people with a medical condition which is seriously affected by their accommodation and adaptations cannot be made.

What happened

6. Ms X is a Council tenant. She applied to join the housing register. She submitted medical evidence which said her home is unsuitable due to damp in the bathroom and leaks from the flat above. The Council decided Ms X does not qualify to join the housing register.
7. The Council was aware there have been some leaks in the bathroom. The complaint replies state the Council dealt with the leaks and that surveyors inspected the bathroom last year and found it to be in a good condition. The Council had also carried out a mould wash. The Council said there was no evidence of disrepair that could not be resolved so Ms X did not qualify for the housing register due to disrepair.
8. The Council considered Ms X’s medical condition and evidence. It said there was nothing to suggest her accommodation was having a significant impact on her health or stopped her from receiving treatment. Ms X’s doctor had noted the impact of the damp but the Council had already noted that that could be resolved by doing repairs. The Council confirmed its decision that Ms X cannot join the housing register.
9. Ms X disagrees with the decision. She says the damp and leaks affect her health and her doctor provided evidence explaining why her home is unsuitable. She says the bathroom is unusable and there is recurring mould. Ms X wants the Council to approve the application.

Assessment

10. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council considered the application and the supporting evidence but decided Ms X had not shown that she is living in a property where there is disrepair that cannot be fixed or that the property has a serious impact on her health. The Council’s decision is consistent with the policy so there is no reason to start an investigation. We do not act as an appeal body and we cannot intervene simply because a council makes a decision that someone disagrees with.
11. Ms X says she has on-going problems with leaks and mould. Ms X needs to report that as an issue to the housing office so the problem can be assessed and further repairs arranged if needed.

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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