Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s response to Ms X’s report of a breach of allotment rules by an allotment holder. There is no significant injustice, and we cannot achieve the outcome Ms X is seeking.

The complaint

1. Ms X was dissatisfied at the Council’s response to several reports of an allotment holder, being in breach of tenancy rules. She said this affected her directly, because of access restrictions and other nuisance related issues. She said this made her anxious and she wanted the Council to issue a notice to the tenant to quit their plot.

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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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (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. Ms X wrote to the Council complaining, because it had not addressed her concerns about an allotment plot holder, who she believed was in breach of their tenancy agreement. The Council replied and set out its reasons why it did not agree, and declined to issue a notice to the tenant to give up their plot.
6. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because it does not satisfy the tests in our Assessment Code, which help us decide which complaints we will investigate. There is no significant injustice.
7. We will not normally investigate a complaint unless there is good reason to believe that the complainant has suffered significant personal injustice as a direct result of the actions or inactions of the Council. To satisfy this threshold we would need to be satisfied a person has suffered serious loss, or harm, or distress directly because of the Council’s actions.
8. Additionally, Ms X wants the Council to issue a notice to quit to the tenant and we could not direct the Council take that action. Therefore, we cannot achieve her desired outcome.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is no significant injustice, and we cannot achieve the outcome she is seeking.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman