Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to revoke the complainants’ high priority on the housing register. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainants, whom I refer to as Mr & Mrs X, complain about the Council’s decision to remove their high priority on the housing register. They want the Council to re-instate the priority. They also complain the Council has not helped to resolve disrepair in their home.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
3. We investigate complaints about councils and certain other bodies. We cannot investigate the actions of Housing Associations. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 25 and 34A, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr & Mrs X’s representative and the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code and comments their representative made in response to a draft of this decision.

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My assessment

5. Mr & Mrs X are Housing Association tenants. In 2020 Mrs X’s doctor wrote to the Council to say she needed to move urgently due to the impact of the poor housing conditions on her mental health. The Council awarded high priority in May 2020. The Council usually reviews the priority after three months and will extend it if there have been no suitable properties to apply for or if the person has been unable to make a successful bid.
6. The Council reviewed the priority in January 2021. There had been 11 properties the family could have applied for but had not. The Council noted Mr & Mrs X had just applied for a house and warned them it might withdraw the priority if they decided not to accept it.
7. The property they applied for is owned by the same Housing Association as their current home. Mr & Mrs X withdrew their bid because they are dispute over repairs which the Housing Association says they must pay for. The Housing Association has completed some repairs but others, for example the bathroom floor, remain uncompleted as the family want the dispute over the charges resolved. The family complained to the Housing Ombudsman about some issues; the Housing Ombudsman did not uphold the complaint.
8. In May 2021 the Council withdrew the priority because Mr & Mrs X had only applied for one property and had refused a suitable offer. The Council contacted the Housing Association about the repairs and the Housing Association explained about the dispute and that some repairs had been completed.
9. Mr & Mrs X disagree with the decision to remove the priority. They say the Council ignored Mrs X’s health and none of the properties were suitable because there was no garden and some of the houses had an exposed boiler. The family say Mrs X needs a garden for reasons linked to her mental health. Mr & Mrs X were reluctant to move to a property with the same Housing Association and they continue to dispute the charges.
10. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The policy says the Council will award high priority for three months and can remove it if people do not bid or refuse a suitable offer. Mr & Mrs X applied for one house but there were 11 other suitable properties they could have expressed an interest in. The medical evidence did not say that Mrs X needs a particular type of property but simply said she needs to move. The Council’s decision is consistent with the policy so there is no reason to start an investigation.
11. The dispute about the disrepair and the charges is a matter between the Housing Association and Mr & Mrs X. It is not a matter for the Council or us to resolve. If the complainants want the bathroom repairs completed they would need to contact their landlord. Alternatively, they could make another complaint to the Housing Ombudsman.

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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