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

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained about the Council’s assessment of her housing application. She says her current council home is unsuitable for her family’s needs due to having stairs and its location to other members of her family who have caused her problems in the past. She wants to be re-housed in a larger property in a more suitable area which meets her medical needs.

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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 consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in the decision making, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered the information provided by the complainant and the Council. I have also considered the Council’s housing allocations policy.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X applied for re-housing because she says her current home is too small and unsuitable for her and her children’s medical needs. She says relatives live in her area who have family connections to abuse she suffered in the past and she does not feel safe. Mrs X was awarded band 3 on the allocations list which makes her eligible to bid on 4-bedroom houses.
6. Mrs X asked for a review of the assessment and then had a further review by a panel of councillors when it was unchanged. The Council says her shortage of bedrooms and her medical priority 2 confirm she is correctly allocated Band 3. Its medical advisors and other professional provided evidence for the decision on these occasions and she does not warrant the higher medical banding which is reserved for severe cases.
7. I have read all the correspondence and I can see nothing which indicates that Mrs X’s housing application has been given the wrong banding priority. We will not uphold a complaint if the council has followed proper procedures, relevant legislation and guidance and taken account of all the information provided, even if an applicant believes that the council should have given more priority to the application to move. It may be the case that, although they need to move urgently, there are other applicants who have an even greater need.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of Mrs X’s housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman