Summary: Mr X complained he was unfairly treated by the Allotment Committee (acting on behalf of the Council) and the Council when he complained. He says the Council has failed to properly investigate his complaint or deal with his concerns that he had been harassed and bullied by the Allotment Committee. He said this has caused him distress, anxiety and affected his health. We have not found the Allotment Committee, or the Council was at fault in its dealings with Mr X.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains he has been unfairly treated by the Allotment Committee (AC) and the Council. He says the Council has failed to properly investigate his complaint or deal with his concerns that he had been bullied by the AC. He also says:

• He was unfairly told to get rid of green waste when the main green site was closed (and did not tell others to do the same).
• He was told to move logs off the plot when others had more than him.
• The Council ignored that there were birds nesting in the logs even when provided with evidence and continued with the eviction process claiming he had not removed the logs.
• He was verbally abused.
• The AC fabricated evidence to make it look like he had not worked his plot.

2. He says he has been served with a Notice to Quit. He said the situation has caused severe distress, anxiety, and that this has affected his health.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I read Mr X’s complaint, considered all the documents he has supplied, and spoke with him on the phone.
6. I made enquiries of the Council and considered information it sent me.
7. Mr X and the Council had the opportunity to comment on this draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Background information

8. Mr X’s allotment is managed by an Allotment Committee (AC), on behalf of Liverpool City Council.

The Allotment Agreement in respect of an Allotment Garden

9. The AC lets individual plots to its members and each plot holder must sign an agreement to say they will adhere to the terms and conditions within it.
10. The Allotment Agreement says:

• (Clause 3 E) Plots should be kept free from weeds, pests and disease and otherwise maintained it in a good state of cultivation, fertility, and good condition.
• (Clause 4) The allotment holder shall observe and perform all directions. and instructions of the Committee-in-Charge appointed for the allotment area.
• The Committee-in-Charge shall mean those persons duly elected by the members of the society at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and approved by the Council under an agreement for the purpose of managing and administering the allotment area on behalf of the Council. If the allotment holder fails to comply with any such directions and instructions (from the Committee-in-Charge), the Committee-in-Charge shall issue the allotment holder with a series of warnings. These are:

• First Notice of breach agreement.
• Second Notice of breach agreement.
• Recommendation to request notice to quit.
• If the allotment holder shall be aggrieved by any direction or instruction of the Committee-in-Charge the allotment holder may appeal within 14 days of the date of the warning notice.

11. The AC also issue a notice called ‘Do’s and Don’ts of a plot holder.’ This noted plot holders should take all rubbish and non-compostable material home and clear all weeds from the allocated plot.

What happened

12. Mr X signed an Allotment Agreement, agreeing to comply with the AC’s terms and conditions. This allowed him to cultivate a designated plot of land. The Council said Mr X signed this in 2018, although the document I have seen is undated.
13. In April 2022, representatives for the AC conducted a site inspection of Mr X’s plot.
14. On 8 April 2022 the AC issued Mr X with a First Notice of Breach of Allotment Tenancy Agreement. This told him he was in breach of clause 3 (E) stating plots must be kept clean, and free from weeds, pests and disease and maintained in a good state of cultivation. It explained failure to comply with the notice by 1 May 2022 may result in a Second Notice being issued. It also explained Mr X could appeal the notice within 14 days by contacting the Committee-in-Charge.
15. Mr X responded to the notice and disputed its findings. Mr X specifically noted there was no option to dispose of green waste at the allotment and a nearby green waste refuse facility was unavailable. Mr X also said he felt singled out and believed if he was issued with a warning letter, other plot holders should have been as well.
16. The AC responded to Mr X on 22 April 2022. It noted it was pleased he intended to tidy his plot. It said a log pile on Mr X’s plot was attracting rodents. It also replied to Mr X’s concerns about other plot holders by noting ‘he did not know if it had sent letters to other plot holders or not’. It reiterated Mr X had a right of appeal to the Committee-in-Charge and explained the next steps if he failed to adhere to its instructions to tidy the plot.
17. The AC carried out a second plot inspection on 1 May 2022. It said Mr X had failed to comply with the requirements of the first warning letter.
18. Mr X responded to the AC on the same day. He said his compost mound consisted of leaves and green waste. He said that the whole of the allotment site was infested with rodents. He noted he had spoken with other allotment tenants and said none had been issued with warning letters. Mr X said he believed he was being singled out and treated differently. He requested a meeting with Council officers.
19. The AC issued a Second Notice of Breach of Allotment Tenancy Agreement on 11 May 2022, this noted Mr X had failed to comply with the first letter and asked him to remove the wood pile and tidy up before the 5 June 2022. It reminded Mr X he had a right of appeal.
20. On 8 June 2022, the AC served Mr X with a Recommendation Notice to Quit (RNTQ) letter. It said it had completed a further site visit and reviewed his concerns. However, it concluded that the condition of Mr X’s plot had not improved. It notified Mr X of his right of appeal, explaining this would need to be in writing to the Committee-in-Charge. The Committee-in-Charge sent its recommendation to the Council for approval.
21. The Council issued Mr X with a formal Notice to Quit (NTQ) letter on 11 July 2022. It said it had considered all documentation submitted and was satisfied the Committee-in-Charge had followed the correct process in accordance with the allotment agreement signed by Mr X.
22. Mr X contacted the Council numerous times between July and September 2022. He disputed the decision of the AC and told the Council he believed he had been treated unfairly. He asked the Council to reconsider its decision.
23. He specifically told the Council in September 2022 that he believed that he was the target of a personal vendetta by the AC after raising issues about inappropriate behaviour. Mr X alleged he had been the victim of bullying, harassment, mental abuse, and sexism. He said he had consistently raised these issues for five years and had requested a full investigation.
24. On the 13 October 2022, the Council told Mr X it had reviewed his concerns. It said the AC had carried out the process correctly and had issued him with numerous warnings and had allowed him time to tidy his plot. It said Mr X had not complied with the terms and conditions of the agreement he had signed. It also said it had written to Mr X in 2019 about similar issues, explaining what he could do if he was unhappy with a member of the elected Committee-in-Charge. The Council said on reviewing and considering Mr X’s correspondence and concerns he had raised it still upheld the AC’s decision.
25. Mr X continued to dispute the Council’s decision and said he had been unable to remove the logs due to nesting birds. Mr X sent photos of his plot to the Council on 4 and 8 November 2022. The Council considered the photographs but noted they had been taken after the NTQ was issued and therefore could not be used in mitigation. It also said it had found no evidence of birds nesting on the plot.
26. Mr X complained to the Ombudsman in November 2022.
27. The Council has paused its NTQ while the Ombudsman investigates Mr X’s complaint.

The Council’s Response to my Enquiries

28. The Council responded to my enquiries in May 2023. It said it was not a mandatory condition within the Allotment Agreement that the Committee would provide a plot to dispose of the tenant’s green waste. It said Mr X was given adequate time and opportunity to tidy up and remove any green waste and the logs on his plot, but it said he had chosen not to.
29. It said it had reviewed Mr X’s concerns but was satisfied the AC had followed the correct procedures and it continued to uphold the AC’s decision to terminate Mr X’s tenancy.

Analysis

30. I must now consider whether there was any fault in the Council’s process which has caused an injustice to Mr X. The Ombudsman is not an advocacy service, we must focus on whether the Council has made its decisions with fault and cannot base our decisions on whether we have sympathy for an individual’s circumstances.
31. The AC acting on behalf of the Council issued Mr X with two notices to improve, before it recommended the Council issue a Notice to Quit. It conducted site visits to Mr X’s plot, explained what he needed to do to avoid the escalation of the matter and considered his concerns. It also explained Mr X had a right of appeal against the notices.
32. I have not been provided with any evidence of harassment or bullying by Mr X or by the AC or the Council. Mr X believes he was singled out, however, the minutes of the AGM dated 27 November 2021 show that other allotment tenancy holders had been evicted. This shows that the AC had not singled Mr X out.
33. Mr X made the AC and the Council aware of his circumstances and the reasons why he believed the notices were unfair. The AC rejected Mr X’s arguments. When the Council issued him with the Notice to Quit, Mr X again put forward his reasons as to why he felt this was unfair. The Council considered his reasons but was not persuaded by them. It noted he had provided photographs, however, it said these were taken approximately four months after the Notice to Quit was issued. It noted that Mr X had made some attempt to tidy his plot, but it was unable to treat this as a mitigating factor due to the length of time that had passed.
34. The Council considered Mr X’s reasons and concerns about the behaviour of the AC towards him, however, it concluded Mr X had been treated in the same way any other plot holder would have been under the terms of the Allotment Agreement and upheld the decision to serve the Notice to Quit.
35. Mr X is understandably disappointed by the Council’s decision to serve him with the Notice to Quit, however, this is a decision the Council is entitled to take. The Council was satisfied that the AC followed the process laid out in the allotment rules and had adequate reasons to serve the notices. It was therefore satisfied that there was sufficient grounds to serve a Notice to Quit. In the absence of any fault in the process, there are no grounds to question this decision however much Mr X disagrees with it.

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Final decision

36. I have completed my investigation into this complaint as I am unable to find fault causing injustice in the actions of the Allotment Committee or the Council towards Mr X.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman