Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has not served an Improvement Notice on the complainant’s landlord or increased the complainant’s priority on the housing register. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Mrs X, says the Council should increase her banding on the housing register, or make a direct offer, due to disrepair in her home which she rents from a Housing Association. Mrs X also says the Council should serve an Improvement Notice on her landlord.

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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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
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 34(1), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and an update from the Council. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mrs X is a Housing Association tenant. Her property needs repairing and she must be decanted while the work is carried out.
6. Mrs X is on the housing register. She asked the Council to increase her priority on the housing register, or make a direct offer, due to the condition of her home. The Council said it would consider a management move if Mrs X asked her housing officer to take her case the Council’s housing panel. The Council says it has not received a request to go panel and Mrs X has not returned the form it issued in March so the Council could assess if she qualifies for medical priority.
7. Mrs X asked the Council to serve an Improvement Notice on her landlord. The Council did not serve a notice but instead worked with the landlord to ensure it offered temporary accommodation so Mrs X could move out during the work. The Council says a property has been identified by the Housing Association and the landlord is waiting for Mrs X to move in.
8. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. In response to Mrs X request for higher priority, or a direct offer, the Council explained how Mrs X could apply for medical priority and what she needed to do to take the case to the panel. There is no suggestion of fault in the Council’s response.
9. In addition, the Council worked with the landlord to facilitate a temporary move to allow the work to start, so there is no need to serve a notice.
10. I cannot investigate any issue relating to disrepair in Mrs X’s home. This is because repairs are the responsibility of the Housing Association and we have no power to investigate the actions of Housing Associations.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman