Bristol City Council (24 019 205)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint the Council placed her in unsuitable temporary accommodation. This is because the Council agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.
The complaint
- Miss X complains the Council placed her in unsuitable temporary accommodation.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- If we were to investigate, it is likely we would find fault causing Miss X an injustice. This is because, following a review, the Council accepted Miss X’s property was unsuitable in September 2024. I am satisfied Miss X and her partner living in an unsuitable property will have caused distress and frustration.
- The Council confirmed Miss X was moved to another property at the end of December 2024. The Council said Miss X has not raised any suitability concerns about this property.
- While the Council had offered a remedy of £250 during its complaint investigation, I am not satisfied this was sufficient to recognise the injustice caused.
- We therefore asked the Council to remedy the injustice caused by the likely fault by completing the following:
- Apologise to Miss X for the delay in providing suitable temporary accommodation.
- Make a payment of £200 for each month Miss X remained in unsuitable temporary accommodation, starting from when the Council first accepted the property was unsuitable. I have calculated Miss X was in unsuitable accommodation for four months, so a total of £800.
Agreed action
- The Council agreed to resolve the complaint and will complete the above within four weeks of the final decision.
Final decision
- We have upheld this complaint because the Council agreed to resolve the complaint early by providing a proportionate remedy for the injustice caused.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman