Summary: We have ended this investigation. Ms X should have complained to us sooner about the Council’s handling of her homelessness applications and her associated temporary accommodation concerns between late 2023 and spring 2024. The Council has already offered Ms X a symbolic payment which is in line with our guidance on remedies. There was nothing worthwhile we could achieve by investigating further.

The complaint

1. Ms X complained about the Council’s handling of her homeless applications and the suitability of several temporary accommodation placements the Council arranged between late 2023 and spring 2024. She said it caused her distress, physical harm and a financial burden.

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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:

• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

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

3. 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).

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information Ms X provided and I spoke to her on the telephone. I considered the information the Council provided. I considered relevant law, policy and guidance and our guidance on remedies published on our website.
5. Ms X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and guidance

Homelessness

6. Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 and the Homelessness Code of Guidance for Local Authorities (the Code) set out councils’ powers and duties to people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.

Duty to refer

7. The ‘duty to refer’ is a legal requirement under the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017. This Act introduced a duty on named public bodies such as the police to identify and refer a person who is homeless or may be threatened with homelessness to a local housing authority team.

What happened

8. In autumn 2023, the police made a referral to the Council as they considered Ms X may be homeless or at risk of homelessness. At the time, Ms X was living outside the United Kingdom. The Council spoke to Ms X and considered whether it owed her a homelessness duty. It decided Ms X was not eligible for help because she was not living in the country.
9. Later in 2023 Ms X moved back to the United Kingdom. She made a homelessness application and the Council arranged temporary accommodation for Ms X.
10. Over a five-month period between late 2023 and spring 2024 the Council arranged seven different temporary accommodation placements for Ms X. Ms X said the temporary accommodation placements were unsuitable and dangerous and she had to fund safe accommodation.
11. In summer 2024 the Council sent Ms X two decision letters. It accepted a main homelessness duty and acknowledged it did not tell her it owed her a relief duty in late 2023.
12. In summer 2025 Ms X made a formal complaint to the Council. In its complaint response, the Council:
• confirmed it had not ignored the original police referral;
• upheld her complaint about some of the temporary accommodation placements arranged for her; and
• accepted a delay in advising her about the relevant homelessness duty.
13. The Council apologised and offered Ms X £900 to remedy the injustice caused. At stage two of the complaints process, the Council increased this offer to £1,400. It said the payment covered £1,100 for Ms X’s personal expenses including reimbursement of costs for alternative accommodation and a contribution to taxi costs. The Council also offered £300 for her distress, delays in communication and its delayed homeless application decision letter. Ms X wanted a higher remedy payment and complained to us.

My findings

14. Ms X complained to us in late August 2025. As explained in paragraph 3 above 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. There is no evidence Ms X could not have complained to us earlier about events from autumn 2023 to summer 2024 and no good reason for us to decide to investigate that period now.
15. Even if we agreed to investigate, this would not lead to a different outcome. This is because the Council has already offered Ms X a total remedy payment of £1,400 (explained in paragraph 13 above), and this remedy is in line with our guidance on remedies. I have not investigated further because there is nothing worthwhile we could achieve by doing so.

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Decision

16. I have ended this investigation. The complaint is late and, even if we exercised discretion to consider it, we could not achieve a worthwhile outcome.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman