Summary: Miss B complained about the Council closing her housing application. We find that the Council failed to clearly explain which documents she had not provided, and what evidence it would accept as proof of her address. This caused Miss B some frustration and inconvenience. The Council has agreed to apologise to Miss B.

The complaint

1. Miss B complains that the Council closed her housing application as incomplete, despite her providing all the required information. She says this caused her unnecessary frustration and distress and has prevented her from joining the Council’s housing register.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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(1), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

4. I have investigated Miss B’s complaint about the way the Council handled the housing application she made in January 2025. I have not investigated Miss B’s complaints about matters which have arisen since she made her complaint to us in April 2025.

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered evidence provided by Miss B and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
6. Miss B 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 scheme places applicants in a priority band from Band A (highest priority) to Band D (lowest priority). Applicants whose circumstances do not warrant inclusion in any of the bands are considered to have no housing need and do not qualify to join the housing register.
2. In exceptional circumstances, the Council will reconsider the qualification criteria.
3. Band B is awarded where the Council has accepted the prevention duty to the applicant. Band A is awarded where the Council has accepted the main housing duty to the applicant.

Homelessness

14. Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities set out councils’ powers and duties to people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.
15. The prevention duty applies when the councils are satisfied that an applicant is threatened with homelessness and eligible for assistance. The council has a duty to help prevent them from becoming homeless. (Housing Act 1996, section 195 and Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraphs 12.1 and 12.3)
16. Under the main housing duty, housing authorities must ensure that suitable accommodation is available for the applicant and their household until the duty is brought to an end, usually through the offer of a settled home. (Housing Act 1996, section 193 and Homelessness Code of Guidance paragraph 17)

Background and key events

17. Miss B applied to join the Council’s housing register in November 2024. The application form set out the required supporting documents, such as proof of identity, address, and financial records. Miss B did not submit any supporting documents.
18. In December 2024, the Council wrote to Miss B to tell her that it had closed her housing application because it was incomplete. The letter listed the required documents and advised her to provide them and reapply.
19. Miss B submitted a new application in January 2025. She said that she needed housing for several reasons, including a threat to her life. She provided proof of identity, proof of income and a telephone bill as evidence of her address.
20. The Council considered Miss B’s application in March 2025. It wrote to her explaining that it may be able to grant an exceptional circumstances award if remaining in her current accommodation posed a threat to her life. It asked Miss B to provide supporting evidence, such as a letter from a relevant agency. It also explained what she needed to do if she was facing homelessness.
21. Miss B provided some supporting evidence, which the Council considered later that month. The Council then wrote to Miss B stating that it had closed her application because it was incomplete. The letter stated that she needed to provide financial records and a utility or council tax bill as proof of her address and then reapply.
22. Miss B submitted a further application that day, along with three months of bank statements. Miss B also submitted a complaint to us about the way the Council had dealt with her housing application.
23. After approaching us, Miss B made a homelessness application to the Council, and it accepted the prevention duty to her. Miss B’s housing application was then accepted and she was awarded Band B. When the Council accepted the main housing duty to her in September 2025, her award was increased to Band A.

Analysis

24. The Council accepts that, before June 2025, it did not adequately warn applicants that their housing application would be closed if they did not provide all the required documents. It also acknowledges that it did not provide clear information about the financial records it required, or what documents it would accept as proof of address when applicants were unable to supply a utility or council tax bill. For some time, the Council was not providing applicants with clear information about why their applications were considered incomplete, leaving them uncertain about what further evidence they needed to provide.
25. In June 2025, the Council changed its procedures. It no longer closes applications as incomplete when supporting documents are missing. Instead, it writes to applicants specifying which documents are outstanding and asks for them to be provided within ten days.
26. When the Council closed Miss B’s first application, it wrote to her setting out all the documents she needed to provide. When Miss B reapplied, she provided all the required documents except for three months of bank statements, and a utility or council tax bill as proof of her address. Miss B was unable to provide a utility or council tax bill because she was living with her parents and the bills were in their names, and so she provided a telephone bill instead.
27. When the Council wrote to Miss B asking her to provide evidence of her exceptional circumstances, it was aware that she had also not provided the required bank statements or proof of address. It should have told Miss B that this evidence was missing. It did not do so, and as a result, she did not find out until the Council closed her application as incomplete. Even then, the Council failed to clearly explain what alternative evidence it would accept if she could not provide a utility or council tax bill. This was fault.
28. The Council also failed to tell Miss B that it had considered the evidence she had provided regarding her exceptional circumstances and had decided it was insufficient to warrant an award.
29. The Council’s failings will have caused Miss B some frustration and inconvenience. But I do not consider Miss B would have joined the housing register sooner if there had been no fault in the way it handled her January 2025 application. This is because it is unlikely that she would have qualified to join the register before she made a homelessness application in April 2025.
30. The letters sent by the Council when closing Miss B’s applications both stated that she had no right to request a review of the decisions, and her only recourse would be judicial review. They also advised Miss B that she could contact our office. While Miss B did not have the right to request a review, she had the right to lodge a complaint with the Council about how it handled her application. The Council should have told Miss B about this right before referring her to our office. However, I do not consider this caused Miss B any significant injustice. This is because Miss B’s application was accepted on to the housing register shortly after she complained to our office.

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Action

31. The Council has agreed to apologise to Miss B within four weeks of my final decision. We publish guidance on remedies which sets out our expectations for how organisations should apologise effectively to remedy injustice. The Council should consider this guidance when making the apology.
32. The Council should provide us with evidence it has complied with the above action.
33. The Council has changed its procedures since Miss B submitted her applications. I therefore do not consider any service improvement recommendations are needed.

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Decision

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

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman