Summary: Mr B complained about the way the Council considered his request to join the housing register. He considered the Council’s refusal to allow him to apply for a larger property meant he could not progress with his plans to foster children. There was no fault by the Council

The complaint

1. I call the complainant Mr B. He complained about the way the Council considered his request to join the housing register. He considered the Council’s refusal to allow him to apply for a larger property meant that he could not progress with his plans to foster children.

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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. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the complaint and documents provided by Mr B and spoke to him. I asked the Council to comment on the complaint and provide information. I sent a draft of this statement to Mr B and the Council and considered their comments.

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What I found

Government guidance

5. Government guidance on housing allocation policies says that “when considering housing applications from prospective foster carers or adopters who would require an extra bedroom to accommodate a foster or adoptive child, authorities will wish to weigh up the risk that the application to foster or adopt may be unsuccessful (leading to the property being under-occupied), against the wider benefits which would be realised if the placement was successful.”

The Council’s policy and practice

6. The Council has a quota of three two or three bedroomed properties set aside for Children Services to use for prospective or approved foster carers. Unless a household is put forward and supported by the Children Services Team as a prospective foster carer, then they will not be considered a prospective foster carer on the applicant’s say so (or intent) alone.

Summary of what happened

7. Mr B lived in a local authority bedsit in a different council area with his husband. They applied to the Council for a larger property to enable them to foster children.
8. The Council refused the application because it considered they did not meet the criteria. In responding to Mr B’s request for a review of the decision the Council said “I cannot consider your application as requiring an extra bedroom on fostering grounds as you have not been approved by the fostering team to foster children. To obtain approval you will need to have an extra bedroom available for a child and the fostering team would need to inspect that bedroom to ensure it was suitable and safe for a child.”
9. In this case the Council said no evidence was provided to demonstrate Mr B was a prospective foster carer.
10. The Council said Mr B had three options:
• apply to the Children’s Services Team to foster children under the age of 2 in his current accommodation;
• look for a privately rented property and the Council may have provided financial assistance in the form of rent deposit and first month’s rent;
• as an applicant who did not qualify for the housing register, Mr B was enabled to bid on larger properties which had not been let through the original bid cycles.

Mr B made a successful bid under the third option and signed the tenancy agreement of two bedroom property in January 2022 .

Analysis

11. Mr B said that this was a ‘chicken and egg’ situation. He could not be considered as a foster carer for the age of children he wished to foster because his existing property was not big enough, but he could not proceed with a fostering application because it would automatically be refused because they didn’t have the necessary bedrooms.
12. In responding to the complaint the Council said it would have been possible for Mr B to be recommended by Children Services for a quota let if their identified need for a prospective foster carer outweighed the risk of allocating social housing to someone that may not be accepted to foster. The quota system operates with the applicant having the highest priority being closely based on the progress through the fostering and adoption process. The Council commented that it would be “less than ideal to offer scarce homes to people who then decide not to foster or adopt”.
13. Government guidance states that councils need to weigh up the risks and benefits of offering social housing to someone who is not already an approved foster carer. There is a risk that the Council makes an offer but the fostering application then does not proceed and the property is under occupied. The Council must have regard to that. There is no fault in the Council looking at how far through the fostering process a potential applicant is. In saying that I recognise Mr B’s point that, given the ages of the children he wanted to foster, he could not advance through the fostering process. But the Council was still entitled to decide there was too much risk when weighed against any potential benefit.
14. I am pleased to note the Council has taken the opportunity to improve its approach. It will:
• review the housing allocation scheme and it intends to review the wording and detail around foster carers to provide clarity to applicants;
• produce a clear process of assessment between housing and children’s services to identify prospective foster carers and assess risk;

• review letters sent to applicants who consider themselves prospective foster carers to ensure all housing options and possible financial assistance are signposted.

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Final decision

15. There was no fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman