Summary: Ms X complained about the Council’s assessment of her housing application. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained about the Council’s allocation of band B status to her housing application. She says she needs to move because of medical pressures on her and her daughter in her current home. She wants the Council to put her in the highest banding Band A because of her circumstances.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organization.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered all the information which Ms X submitted with her complaint. I have also considered the Council’s response and its housing allocations scheme.

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What I found

5. Ms X applied for housing on the Council’s housing register. She currently has a banding of Band B which is for high medical priority. She is unhappy with the banding and believes she should be in band A .
6. She asked the Council to review the decision and provided medial evidence about her situation. The Council reviewed its decision and the evidence but concluded that she did not warrant Band A priority. This status is reserved for applicants who need to move urgently due to their housing conditions or are housebound in their current home. The Council referred to its housing allocations policy and says that there are other applicants with higher needs who qualify for Band A.
7. 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

8. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman