Summary: Miss X complained the Council gave her the wrong priority on its housing register. We will not investigate this complaint because Miss X made it too late. Other matters Miss X complained about did not cause her a significant personal injustice.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Council gave her the wrong priority on its housing register. Miss X also said the Council invited her to view a potential new home when it should not have done and that it did not contact her to view a different home when she was shortlisted for it. Miss X said this meant she remains in a property which is dangerous for her child, which is causing her stress and upset.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate 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 continue an investigation if we decide any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered:
• all the information Miss X provided and discussed the complaint with her; and
• the Council’s comments about the complaint and the supporting documents it provided.
5. Miss X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and guidance

6. Every local housing authority must publish an allocations scheme that sets out how it prioritises applicants on its housing register, and its procedures for allocating social housing. All allocations must be made in strict accordance with the published scheme. (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(1) & (14))

What happened

7. Miss X lives in social housing managed by a housing association. Several years ago, she joined the Council’s housing register to move to a more suitable home. In spring 2022, she asked the Council to give her higher priority because of her child’s medical needs and the risks posed by her home.
8. In summer 2022, the Council issued its decision on Miss X’s priority. Miss X was unhappy with that decision and submitted new medical information for the Council to consider. The Council issued a further priority decision in late December 2022.
9. In October 2023, Miss X’s housing association told her it believed the Council had shortlisted her for a potential new home because she had one of the highest priorities of people who had asked to move into the property. The housing association said the Council would contact her to invite her to view the property. Miss X says the Council did not contact her until she chased it, at which point it said she was not shortlisted. The Council gave the property to someone with higher priority than Miss X.
10. In early 2024, Miss X viewed a potential property and made an offer on it. The property was given to someone with higher priority on the housing register. Miss X says she should not have been shortlisted and invited to view the property as she was not one of the people with highest priority.
11. Miss X complained to the Ombudsman in June 2024.
12. In August 2024, Miss X asked the Council to consider new medical information she had. The Council agreed to review Miss X’s priority based on the new information.

Findings

13. The Council made its decisions on Miss X’s housing priority in 2022. Miss X did not complain to the Ombudsman until June 2024, over 18 months later. The law sets out people must complain to the Ombudsman within 12 months of becoming aware of the matter they complain about. We can set aside this requirement where the person has good reasons for not complaining to us sooner. I have not seen a good reason why Miss X could not have complained to us before June 2024. I therefore cannot investigate her complaint about how the Council decided what priority she should have on its housing register.
14. I will not investigate Miss X’s complaints that the Council did not invite her to view the property in October 2023 and that it wrongly invited her to visit the property in early 2024 because any fault did not cause her a significant personal injustice. Both homes went to applicants with higher priority than Miss X and any fault by the Council would not have changed this.
15. Since Miss X’s complaint to the Ombudsman she has asked the Council to carry out a review of her priority decision. If Miss X is unhappy with the outcome of that review, it is open to her to complain to the Council about it, and any other matters that have occurred since June 2024. Miss X can then complain to the Ombudsman if she remains dissatisfied.

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Final decision

16. I have ended my investigation. Miss X complained about the Council’s priority decisions too late and the other matters did not cause her a significant personal injustice.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman