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

The complaint

1. Miss X says she is living in accommodation which is unsuitable for her family’s health needs and is overcrowded. She is currently in Band C on the housing register and believes she should have a higher banding priority.

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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 how the organisation made its decision, 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 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. Miss X says she is living in accommodation which is unsuitable for her and her children due to her son’s medical needs and overcrowding. She asked for her housing banding to be reviewed in 2024 and in February she was awarded Band C. She asked for two further medical assessments but these were unsuccessful. In October 2024 she had a further review of her banding but it did not change her priority.
6. She asked for a second-stage Panel to re-assess the decision and this met in December 2024. The Panel considered all the available evidence but decided that her banding should remain band C.
7. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether someone disagrees with the decision the organisation made.

8. We may not find fault with a council for failing to re-house someone, if it has prioritised applicants and allocated properties according to its published lettings scheme policy. We recognise that the demand for social housing far outstrips the supply of properties in many areas.
9. I have seen no evidence that the Council has failed to consider all the information which Miss X has provided about her application.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of a 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