Brighton & Hove City Council (25 008 154)
Category : Other Categories > Leisure and culture
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 03 Aug 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint that the Council discriminated against him by the way it communicated with him. This is because any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.
The complaint
- Mr X complained that he was discriminated against by the Council and named an officer he believed treated him poorly. He also said that officer was guilty of slander after they accused him of using offensive language. Mr X also complained about the Council’s communication about this matter.
- Mr X complained that he experienced worry, stress and anxiety because of the Council’s actions.
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 any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X complained that the Council discriminated against him and there was poor communication whilst trying to resolve his complaint.
- The Council responded to Mr X, provided an apology, and paid him £100 as a remedy for the delay in responding to his stage two complaint.
- Based on the information provided, there is no evidence of a significant personal injustice. In addition, we will not look at the Council’s complaint handling because we will not investigate the substantive complaint and it is not proportionate to look at complaint handling in isolation.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman