Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council placing her in unsuitable temporary accommodation in 2016 and 2017. She also says her banding on the waiting list was changed without explanation in 2019. The Ombudsman should not exercise his discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because it relates to matters she was aware of more than 12 months before she submitted her complaint to us. She had a right of appeal to the courts and it was reasonable for her to pursue this. The decision of 2019 carries a right of review and she can pursue this with the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs X, complains about the Council placing her in an unsuitable bed and breakfast for months in 2016. She also says the temporary accommodation offered to her afterwards was also unsuitable. Her solicitors complained to the Council at the time, but she says the outcome was delayed and unsatisfactory. In 2019 the Council reduced her banding on the housing waiting list without explaining to her why it had done so.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
4. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe it would be reasonable for the person to ask for a council review or appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I have considered all the information which Mrs X has submitted with her complaint and she has commented on the draft decision.

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What I found

6. Mrs X was accepted as homeless by the Council in 2016. She was placed in bed and breakfast accommodation for several months and she complained that this was unsuitable for her and her family. The Council moved her to temporary accommodation in 2017 and she again complained that it was unsuitable. Mrs X sought the support of solicitors in 2016 who forwarded her complaints to the Council.
7. She says that the Council’s responses were unsatisfactory and made further complaints in 2018. The Ombudsman does not normally investigate complaints where the complaint was received more than 12 months after the complainant became aware of the claimed fault by the Council. Mrs X could have submitted her complaints in 2016 and 2017 to us but did not do so until mid-2019.
8. The Ombudsman can exercise discretion to consider older complaints in certain circumstances. We would not do so in this case because complaints about the suitability of temporary accommodation carry a right of review and appeal to the County Court. Mrs X was represented by solicitors from 2016 so it was reasonable for her to make an appeal.
9. Mrs X complained about the decision in October 2019 to change her waiting list banding from Band C to band D without explanation. Her solicitor complained to the Council about this. The Council says this was because she was only eligible for Band C when she was in temporary accommodation. When she accepted an assured tenancy in the private rented sector in 2017 her status should have been reduced to band D because the homeless duty had been discharged. She remained on a higher band as an oversight and in 2019 this was discovered and the banding changed.
10. Mrs X has a right to have the Council’s decision reviewed and her solicitor was informed of this.

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Final decision

11. The Ombudsman should not exercise his discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because it relates to matters she was aware of more than 12 months before she submitted her complaint to us. She had a right of appeal to the courts and it was reasonable for her to pursue this. The decision of 2019 carries a right of review and she can pursue this with the Council.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman