Summary: Miss X complained that the Council kept closing Mr B’s housing applications. We find that the Council closed Mr B’s applications without allowing him to explain why he could not provide the documents it was requesting to support his application. Then, after it was aware of his circumstances, it again requested evidence he was unable to provide. These failings caused Miss X and Mr B frustration. However, there was no fault in the way the Council decided that Mr B did not qualify to join the Council’s housing register. The Council has agreed to apologise to Mr B and Miss X and to make service improvements.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains that the Council kept closing her brother’s housing applications as incomplete. She says the Council would not process the applications without documentary evidence which her brother was unable to provide.
2. Miss X says the Council’s actions have caused her frustration and inconvenience and have prevented her brother from joining the housing register.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered evidence provided by Miss X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
6. Miss X and the Council have had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

Housing allocations

7. Every local housing authority must publish an allocation scheme that sets out how it prioritises applicants, and its procedures for allocating housing. All allocations must be made in strict accordance with the published scheme. (Housing Act 1996, section 166A(1) & (14))
8. Every application made to a local housing authority for an allocation of housing accommodation shall (if made in accordance with the procedural requirements of the authority’s allocation scheme) be considered by the authority. In considering applications, authorities must ascertain:
• if an applicant is eligible for an allocation of accommodation, and
• if he or she qualifies for an allocation of accommodation. (Allocation of accommodation: guidance for local housing authorities in England, paragraph 3.2 and Housing Act 1996, section 166(3))
9. Applicants have the right to request a review of a decision that they are ineligible for an allocation, or that they are not a qualifying person. (Housing Act 1996, section 160ZA(9) and section 166A(9))
10. Paragraph 2.2.3 of the Council’s housing allocation scheme says:

“In addition to the application, the following documents (where available) must be submitted as evidence, via the Scheme website to verify the information provided by the main applicant, plus any other person who might reside with the applicant who might wish to become a joint tenant:

1. Passport, to help determine eligibility to rent social housing in England.
2. A utility or Council Tax bill from the past three months, to help determine eligibility to rent social housing in England.
3. Birth certificate, to help determine qualification to join the Scheme.
4. Details of any relevant unspent convictions, to help determine qualification to join the Scheme.
5. All financial records from the past three months relating to income and savings, to help determine qualification to join the Scheme.
6. All legal records relating to property ownership to help determine qualification to join the Scheme.
7. Any other information that helps to determine eligibility to rent social housing in England, qualification to join the Scheme or making a community contribution.”
1. The allocation scheme places applicants in a priority band from Band A (highest priority) to Band D (lowest priority). Applicants who have been assessed as having no housing need and whose circumstances do not warrant inclusion in any of the priority bands do not qualify to join the housing register.

Background and key events

12. In July 2024, Miss X submitted a housing application on behalf of her brother, Mr B. He was in prison at the time but would need housing when he was released.
13. The application form listed the evidence which needed to be provided with the application, such as ID, proof of address, and financial records. Miss X provided her brother’s ID but was unable to provide any of the other documents.
14. In September, the Council wrote to Mr B to tell him that it had closed his application because he had not provided the required documents. The letter stated that in order to validate and assess the application, all the documents listed on the application form needed to be submitted. It advised Mr B to reapply once he had uploaded all the required documents.
15. Miss X reapplied for Mr B in September but did not provide any additional documents. In October, the Council again closed the application as incomplete.
16. Mr B was released from prison on 22 October. He moved in with Miss X on a temporary basis.
17. Miss X then reapplied for Mr B to join the housing register. She submitted several documents, including an October bank statement, Mr B’s ID, and information about why he needed housing.
18. The next day, Miss X complained to the Council that it kept closing Mr B’s applications as incomplete, despite him providing all the documents he had. She told the Council that Mr B could only stay with her for two months and he would then become homeless.
19. In the Council’s response to Miss X’s complaint, it said that it had closed the first two applications because Mr B had not provided the required documentary evidence. It said that his latest application had not yet been assessed.
20. Miss X then escalated her complaint. She explained that Mr B could not provide three months of bank statements because he was in prison until 22 October, and she could not provide evidence of his income because he was awaiting the outcome of his Universal Credit application. She said that she had provided his ID, proof of his address and a letter from the probation service outlining his conditions upon release. Miss X asked that the Council communicate with Mr B instead of closing his applications.
21. In the Council’s response, it acknowledged that Mr B could not provide some documents due to his circumstances. It also agreed that the closure letter could have been clearer about what was required. It said that given the difficulties Mr B had experienced, it had asked its housing team to assess Mr B’s application.
22. The housing team then contacted Mr B and requested specific evidence relating to the housing needs he had selected when he applied for housing, which were ‘homelessness’, ‘care and support’ and ‘exceptional circumstances’. The Council gave Mr B advice about what to do if he was threatened with homelessness.
23. The Council also wrote to Mr B asking for a utility bill or council tax bill as proof of his address, and two further months of bank statements.
24. Miss X says that the utility bills and council tax bill were not in Mr B’s name, and he could not provide three months of bank statements because he had opened the account after he was released from prison. Miss X says she had already explained why Mr B needed housing and there was no further evidence she could provide.
25. On 31 December, the Council decided that Mr B did not qualify to join the housing register. It explained that Mr B did not meet the criteria for the housing needs he had selected because the Council had not accepted a homelessness duty to him, he had not provided evidence of an assessment to show that he needed to give or receive care, and he had not provided information to show that his need to move was exceptional.

Analysis

26. When Miss X submitted the housing applications, there was no facility for her to explain why she had not provided all the required supporting documents. As a result, the Council did not consider Mr B’s individual circumstances and closed his first two applications.
27. It was only when Miss X submitted a complaint on 19 November that it would have been clear to the Council why Mr B was unable to provide the documents. The Council then appropriately referred his application to the housing team to be assessed.
28. However, the Council again requested documents which Mr B could not provide. It asked Mr B to provide his next two months of bank statements, which was not possible as two months had not passed since the bank statement he had already provided. The Council also asked Mr B to provide a utility bill or council tax bill, despite knowing that he was staying with his sister and would not have such documents in his name. The Council’s failure to adapt its documentation requirements to Mr B’s circumstances was fault and will have caused unnecessary frustration.
29. While the Council should not have required Mr B to provide documents he did not have, there was no fault in the way it decided he did not qualify to join the register. Mr B did not provide evidence to show that he met the criteria for any of the housing needs in the Council’s allocation scheme.

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Action

30. The Council has agreed to apologise to Mr B and Miss X for the failings identified in this case. It will do so within four weeks of my final decision and will consider our guidance on remedies when making the apology.
31. The Council has also agreed to ensure applicants who are unable to provide all the required documents are able to provide their reasons when they submit their application. The applicant’s reasons will then be considered before the Council decides whether to close their application as incomplete. The Council will take this action within eight weeks of my final decision.
32. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above actions.

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Decision

33. I have completed my investigation and uphold Mr B’s complaint. There was fault by the Council which caused injustice. The action the Council has agreed to take is sufficient to remedy that injustice.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman