Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council excluded him from its housing register when it decided he no longer had a local connection. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to justify an investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council unfairly excluded him from its housing register when it decided he lacked a local connection. He says he was resident in the Council’s area for over 12 years until he recently had to leave to provide care for a family member who had a serious medical condition.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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 or continue 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))
4. 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

5. I considered information provided by the complainant.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code and the Property Pool Plus Housing Allocation Scheme (in place since January 2024), which is a common allocation scheme between the Council and several other councils.

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My assessment

7. In 2023, Mr X was registered on the Council’s housing register.
8. Mr X moved to another council’s area to provide care for a family member who had a serious medical condition. He updated his Property Pool Plus application with his new address.
9. In late 2024, after reviewing Mr X’s housing register application, the Council decided Mr X no longer met its local connection criteria and removed him from its register. Mr X is unhappy with the Council’s decision.
10. In the Council’s stage two complaint response, it explained Mr X no longer qualified following changes to the Property Pool Plus Housing Allocations Scheme in January 2024. This introduced a requirement that applicants had to evidence a minimum of two years of uninterrupted residency within the Scheme’s area or meet one of the other local connection criteria. The Council was entitled to review and change its policy in this way.
11. The Council’s stage 2 response shows its review panel considered Mr X’s reasons for needing to move away and the evidence provided by his family member who he had cared for. However, the review panel upheld the decision that Mr X no longer met the local connection criteria. It provided clear reasons for its decision that were in line with the Property Pool Plus Housing Allocation Scheme. It explained:

• Mr X’s evidence did not show a minimum of two years’ continuous residency in the Scheme’s area;
• Mr X’s family connections, who lived in the Scheme’s area, were not considered near relatives (such as parents, siblings or adult children). This meant Mr X did not have a local connection through family associations; and,
• Mr X’s individual circumstances did not meet any of the other criteria for disregarding the local connection requirement.

12. I understand Mr X is disappointed with the Council’s decision. However, there is not enough evidence of fault in its decision making to justify an investigation.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint the Council excluded him from its housing register when it decided he no longer had a local connection. There is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to justify an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman