Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about money owed to Miss X under the Council’s self-help scheme. The Council has offered a suitable remedy through its complaint procedure.

The complaint

1. Miss X complains she has not received a payment from the Council that it told her she was entitled to under its self-help scheme. She complains about the Council’s response time to her complaint.
2. Miss X is seeking payment of the agreed figure and compensation for the inconvenience and distress caused. She also seeks an explanation of the delay and failure to respond to her complaint.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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.

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Miss X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. In June 2025, the Council agreed to pay Miss X £4530.77 as a deposit and first month’s rent for a tenant moving into Miss X’s property. It did not pay her the agreed amount.
7. Miss X wrote to the Council on several occasions to resolve the matter before filing a formal complaint. The Council upheld her complaint.
8. The Council recognised fault in its complaint handling and offered a remedy of £150 for inconvenience and delay. This is in addition to the £4530.77 it will pay to Miss X once she sends it an invoice.
9. The remedy offered by the Council is in line with our guidance on remedies and puts Miss X back in the position she would have been, but for the fault. We will not, therefore, investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because the Council has offered a suitable remedy for injustice through its own complaint procedure.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman