Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of her housing application because further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained the Council has left her in accommodation that is unsuitable due to significant disrepair and overcrowding and at risk of domestic abuse. She also complained it failed to properly consider safeguarding referrals.

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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 cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
4. 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, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

Housing register

7. The Council considered Ms X’s housing situation and awarded band B on its housing register. Band B is awarded where the applicant is severely overcrowded (lacking two bedrooms or more) and where they have an urgent medical of welfare need to move.
8. Band A may be awarded where the applicant is statutorily overcrowded, or where there is a threat of serious violence or harassment to a Council tenant, or in exceptional circumstances, such as where “composite needs which considered together constitutes an emergency need for housing”.
9. Records seen show the Council decided Ms X was not statutorily overcrowded and confirmed to Ms X it had considered all the circumstances of her case.
10. Records seen also show Ms X explained she did not feel safe in the property despite her former partner and the perpetrator of domestic abuse being in custody because his family and friends knew where she lived. In response to our enquiries, the Council said, based on the information Ms X had provided, there was nothing to indicate a current threat or risk. However, it acknowledged it could have done more to seek further evidence from Ms X and it had shared the learning from this case with the relevant team.
11. We are not an appeal body. It is not our role to say whether the priority band awarded was correct. We can consider the decision-making process but unless there was fault in that process we cannot comment on the decision reached. The evidence seen indicates the Council has considered the information and evidence Ms X provided and its decision is in line with its published allocations scheme. Further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

Safeguarding

12. Ms X told us she raised concerns about her personal safety due to the domestic abuse and about the impact of her current housing on her and on her children. In its complaint response, the Council acknowledged a lack of follow-up, for which it apologised. However, the Council has taken into account the factors raised in the safeguarding referral when considering Ms X’s housing situation and her priority on its housing register. Therefore, the failure to formally respond to Ms X about the safeguarding concerns has not caused a significant injustice and an apology was sufficient to remedy the uncertainty and frustration caused. Further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

Disrepair

13. Ms X has complained over several years about disrepair in her Council property and says the Council has not carried out appropriate works to address this. The law says we cannot investigate complaints about the Council’s actions as a registered social landlord, so we cannot consider this complaint further.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because further investigation is unlikely to lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman