Brighton & Hove City Council (25 004 345)
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the way the Council dealt with a homelessness application. The Council has acknowledged there were errors in its handling. The apology, extra training for staff and financial remedy offered by the Council is a satisfactory outcome, so any further investigation is not warranted.
The complaint
- Mr X complains the Council has not dealt with his homelessness application as it should have, and has caused additional anxiety, wasted time and travel costs.
- Mr X is seeking a further apology, a review of the Council’s appointment booking system and the decisions made and compensation.
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
- Mr X complained the Council had provided an incorrect response to his contact, that he had to wait to be seen when he attended the Council office, and that he was asked to provide more information and to come back the following day.
- The Council acknowledged its response to Mr X was incorrect and that it should not have asked him to come back the next day when he attended.
- The Council apologised, said it would provide extra training to relevant staff, and offered £200 in recognition of Mr X’s additional time and travel.
- In light of the Council’s response, any outcome we are likely to achieve does not warrant an investigation. It is unlikely we would achieve more and so we will not investigate this complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the Council has accepted fault and offered a satisfactory remedy during its complaints process.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman