Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision that the complainant must give up a former tenancy. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, Ms X, complains the Council stopped her from bidding for properties from the housing register until she ended the tenancy for a property she had fled due to domestic violence.

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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))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and the allocations policy. I also considered our Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. Ms X had a secure tenancy in another area with a Housing Association. Ms X fled the property due to domestic violence.
5. The Council accepted Ms X as homeless and told her it will provide her with another social tenancy. The Council provided Temporary Accommodation until it can provide a secure tenancy.
6. Ms X is on the housing register but complains the Council forced her to give up the Housing Association tenancy so she could bid for properties from the housing register.
7. The Council said it had accepted her as homeless because it was not safe for her to remain in the Housing Association property. It assured her it would provide another secure tenancy. But it also explained she cannot keep both tenancies at the same time. Ms X ended the Housing Association tenancy but says she wanted something to fall back on in case the Council offers an unsuitable property.
8. The law says councils must offer a secure tenancy when someone has left a secure tenancy due to domestic violence.
9. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council accepted Ms X could not stay in the Housing Association property. It accepted a homelessness duty and provided Temporary Accommodation until it can provide a home with a secure/social tenancy. The law allows councils to provide non-secure tenancies to people to whom the homelessness duty is owed but, as Ms X fled domestic violence, the Council will only offer a secure tenancy.
10. The Council decided it was unsafe for Ms X to stay in the Housing Association property and this was the reason it accepted Ms X as homeless. On this basis it was not wrong for the Council to decide she should end the Housing Association tenancy and it is likely the Housing Association would have required Ms X to give notice because she was not living there. On a purely practical basis, Ms X would have been required to pay rent and council tax on two properties and it may not have been possible to receive benefits for both properties.
11. I appreciate Ms X wanted to retain the Housing Association flat as a fall-back position, but it was not wrong for the Council to decide she needed to end the tenancy if she wanted to pursue alternative housing with the Council. If the Council offers a property which Ms X thinks is unsuitable, there will be review rights she can use.

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Final decision

12. 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