Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council offering a loan for a lighting scheme which has left her school with a budget deficit when claimed energy savings were not realised. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint is made on behalf of governors of a state school and it is not a body from which the Ombudsman can accept a complaint.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs X, complains about the Council promoting a loan for a policy to replace existing lighting with LED energy saving fittings. She says the scheme led to a deficit each year because the predicted savings did not meet the loan costs. She wants the Council to compensate the school for the deficit created in its budget.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate complaints from public bodies. (Local Government Act 1974, section 27(1)(a), as amended) section 26(A)

We can only accept complaints from members of the public or their authorised representatives. This means we cannot accept complaints from school governors representing their school. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A, as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I have considered all the information which Mrs X submitted with her complaint and she has been given the opportunity to comment on the draft decision.

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What I found

4. Mrs X says that her school was encouraged to accept a loan from the Council to fund replacement of its lighting fixtures with LED versions to save energy and reduce the carbon footprint. She says the scheme was misrepresented and that the savings from the scheme do not cover the loan costs which has left the school with an overall deficit to its budget of over £37,000.
5. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate. One of these relates to complaints by public bodies such as boards of governors of state schools rather than individual members of the public.
6. The complaint was made against the Council on behalf of school governors and is outside the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

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Final decision

7. The Ombudsman cannot investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint is made on behalf of governors of a state school and it is not a body from which the Ombudsman can accept a complaint.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman