Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to progress Mr X’s homelessness application. We cannot achieve the outcome Mr X wants and it would be reasonable for him to ask for a council review if he believes he has provided sufficient information for a decision on his case.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about the Council’s failure to make a decision on his homelessness application he says he has been rough sleeping in his car because he has no accommodation and has not been offered any accommodation by the Council.

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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:

• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants, or
• It would be reasonable for the person to ask for a council review or appeal.

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

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. Mr X approached the Council as homeless in October 2025 and said that he was living in his car without accommodation. The Council treated the application as a rough sleeping submission and asked Mr X to provide details about his previous housing, income and other details relevant to his situation.
6. Mr X says he was advised by the Council’s rough sleepers outreach team that it would arrange to meet him at a location where he was sleeping to verify his situation but he wanted an office appointment which was refused. The Council says it did not refuse an appointment but that he would need to verify he was sleeping in his car and provide the documents requested earlier. It has been unable to complete a homelessness assessment without the required details from the applicant.
7. Since Mr X complained to us we asked the Council for the current progress on Mr X’s application. It says it is undertaking a review of his case but that it has not heard from him since April and has been unable to locate where he is sleeping. It has not received the information it asked him to provide when he applied.
8. We cannot progress Mr X’s homelessness application and both the Council and Mr X needs to arrange an interview at a suitable location to verify his housing circumstances and for him to present the documents required for an assessment to be completed. Once an assessment is completed and a decision can be made Mr X will have statutory review and appeal rights available if he disagrees with the outcome.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to progress Mr X’s homelessness application. We cannot achieve the outcome Mr X wants and it would be reasonable for him to ask for a review if he believes he has provided sufficient information for a decision on his case.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman