Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council deciding to ban X from library facilities. Any complaint about a ban in 2024 is late and there is no good reason to consider it now. And of the later ban in 2025, there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making.

The complaint

1. X complained about the Council banning them from its library facilities. They said this amounted to discrimination, because he was disabled. X wants the ban overturned.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
3. 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. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
4. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
5. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we think the issues could reasonably be mentioned as part of the legal proceedings regarding a closely related matter. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

6. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
7. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
8. I have considered the Council’s Library byelaws, which are available on its website.

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My assessment

9. In early December 2024, the Council notified X they could not enter any of the Council’s library facilities for a period of one month. I will not consider a complaint about this matter because the decision was made more than 12 months before X made a complaint to us. And there are no good reasons why X could not have made a complaint about this matter, sooner and certainly within 12 months.
10. In late November 2025, the Council wrote again to X and said it was banning them from its library facilities. It said on this occasion the period was for three months. It explained the relevant sections of its byelaws which it believed X was in contravention of. Furthermore, it declined to overturn this decision, including after X pointed out specific medical considerations to it.
11. In the complaint correspondence, the Council acknowledged X’s stated position that he was disabled, but said it believed his conduct was not linked to his disability. It also offered to meet with X, to discuss an acceptable behaviour agreement, to ensure they could successfully return to the library.
12. I will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s decision-making to ban X from its libraries.
13. This is because the Council has a policy that allows for a person to be excluded from accessing its facilities if it believes they are in breach of the library byelaws. On the evidence I have seen, about the incidents involving X, before the ban, the Council had sufficient information to form a view about this. And in line with our powers as referred to in paragraph four, I cannot criticise its decision.
14. X said the Council were racist and were discriminating against him because of a disability. We cannot decide if an organisation has breached the Equality Act as this can only be done by the courts. But we can make decisions about whether an organisation has properly taken account of an individual’s rights in its treatment of them. On the evidence I have seen it is unlikely we would find fault in the Council’s actions after X made it aware of his medical concerns.
15. In any case, X has lodged a civil claim with the courts, against the Council for disability discrimination. Therefore, in line with our powers at paragraph five, it would be reasonable to expect X to raise these issues as part of that claim, if they want a definitive ruling, so we will not consider it further.

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Final decision

16. We will not investigate X’s complaint because part is late and there is not enough evidence of fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman