Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of a housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about the Council’s decision that he did not qualify for the housing register or that it could not offer him a direct transfer to a different local authority where he wants to move.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council. I have also considered the Council’s housing allocations policy.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

5. Mr X is a tenant of the Council and he requested a transfer to a different local authority where he believes he will be able to have better conditions for his mental health problems. He applied to the Council’s choice-based lettings scheme which includes new applications and transfer requests. The Council told him that he has no priority because he is considered to be adequately housed in his current accommodation.
6. Mr X says he wants to move to a different London borough for mental health reasons. The Council carried out a medical assessment of his application but he did not meet the threshold for medical priority. It told him that it has no authority to refer him to another council and that he can only apply directly to that council or seek a mutual exchange with another tenant from that locality.
7. Mr X has recently told us that he is actively seeking a mutual exchange. We cannot consider mutual exchange administration because complaints about these matters fall within the remit of the Housing Ombudsman service.
8. 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 an organisation 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 the organisation made. We will not investigate this compalint because there is insufficient evidence of any fault by the Council.
9. The Ombudsman may not find fault with a council’s assessment of a housing application or a housing applicant’s priority if it has carried this out in line with its published allocations scheme. We recognise that the demand for social housing far outstrips the supply of properties in many areas.

Back to top

Final decision

10. We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of a housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman