Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of Mrs X’s housing application because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant our involvement.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained about the Council’s decision to place her in band three for housing allocations.
2. Mrs X said her current housing is impacting on the health of herself, and one of her children (Y) and the allocations decision will impact her ability to get improved housing.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

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 and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mrs X complained the Council failed to consider information relating to Y’s health when making its allocations decision. Mrs X said her current housing is causing a detriment to Y’s health and wants it to reconsider the decision.
8. Following its initial decision, the Council carried out a review of the decision and upheld it. The Council detailed the considerations it had taken around the medical and welfare and overcrowding criteria. Based on the information available, the Council appear to have taken the appropriate considerations when taking its publicly accessible allocations policy into consideration.
9. 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 a Council 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.
10. Based on the evidence available it is unlikely we would find fault in the Council’s decision making and therefore we will not investigate.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant our involvement.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman