Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of her housing register application. We are satisfied the Council’s actions – an apology and payment – were sufficient to remedy the injustice caused.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained about the Council’s two-year delay in carrying out a medical assessment and awarding medical points on its housing register. Ms X said the delay meant her family continued to suffer the impact of overcrowded housing and she had missed the chance to be rehoused.

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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 provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we are satisfied with the actions an organisation has taken or proposes to take. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(7), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

What happened

5. Ms X completed a medical assessment form in August 2023. The Council says it received this in October 2023, but it did issue a decision because the medical advice went to an officer who had recently left.
6. In November 2024, Ms X completed a fresh medical assessment form. In May 2025, the Council completed its assessment. It awarded 40 medical points. It said her disabled child needed their own bedroom and the family needed a property no higher than the first floor with access to outdoor space nearby.
7. The Council accepted a delay in assessing medical priority. It considered whether Ms X had missed an offer in the period October 2023 to May 2025. It said it had not allocated a suitable property (three bedrooms, up to first floor maximum) to an applicant with the same number of points or less than awarded to Ms X, so it was satisfied she had not been disadvantaged by its delay. It apologised and offered to pay her £925 for the impact of its service failures.

My assessment

8. It is likely that, if the Council had carried out a medical assessment without delay in late 2023, it would have awarded Ms X an extra 40 points at that point and agreed she could bid on three-bedroom properties. This means, between October 2023 and May 2025 Ms X did not have the correct number of points.
9. The Council looked at all three-bedroom properties, no higher than first floor, that it allocated in that period. It confirmed they were not allocated to an applicant with the same number of points that Ms X now has or less. This means that, even if she had been bidding with the correct number of points, she would not have been successful. Therefore, she has not missed out on an offer.
10. That said, the delay caused distress and uncertainty, and Ms X was put to avoidable time and trouble chasing the Council for a decision on her medical priority. The Council offered to pay her £925, which I consider was sufficient to remedy the injustice caused. Further investigation by us would not lead to a different outcome, so we will not consider the complaint further.

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Final decision

11. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because we are satisfied with the steps the Council has taken to remedy the injustice caused.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman