St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council (23 015 292)
Category : Other Categories > Leisure and culture
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 09 Feb 2024
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the conduct of Council staff. This is because there is nothing further investigation could add to the previous investigation.
The complaint
- Miss X complains Council gym staff discriminated against her because of her race and the Council did not investigate this matter properly.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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:
- there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
- we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation,
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the Miss X and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Miss X says Council staff were rude and overcharged her for services because of her race. Miss X views the incident as a hate crime.
- The Council interviewed Miss X and staff. It also reviewed relevant records and explained why CCTV was not available. Miss X says the Council did not interview a witness. I have not seen the Council’s response to this however it is up to the Council whether it required further information. There is not enough evidence of fault in its investigation.
- The Council apologised for its error in charging and offered a refund. It found no evidence of discrimination. It told Miss X if she viewed the incident as a hate crime the police are best placed to investigate. There is nothing further we could add to this investigation.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because there is nothing further investigation would add.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman