Summary: Mr X complains the Council has racially discriminated against and harassed his family. And refused to issue a building control completion certificate. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint as we are unlikely to find fault, it is unlikely an investigation will lead to a different outcome, and we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X is seeking.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has discriminated against him in its dealings with him over building regulation compliance for work he had carried out at his home. He says the Council has:
• refused to issue a building control certificate
• racially discriminated again him and his wife; and
• harassed his family

He wants the Council to issue a completion certificate or provide detailed evidence on why the work does not comply with building regulations.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A (6), as amended)

3. 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)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information provided by Mr X which includes his complaints to the Council and its responses.
5. I have also considered the Council’s duties under the building regulations.
6. Mr X commented on the draft version of this decision.

Back to top

What I found

7. Most building work, whether new, alterations, or extensions requires Building Regulation approval. The Building Act 1984 is the primary legislation under which the Building Regulations and other secondary legislation are made. The legislative framework of the 'Building Regulations' is principally made up of The Building Regulations 2010 and The Building (Approved Inspectors etc.) Regulations 2010.
8. The Regulations set standards for the design and construction of buildings to ensure health and safety for people in and about those buildings. It is the responsibility of land owners to ensure that works comply with Building Regulations.
9. Wherever a contract for service exists between a consumer and a professional tradesperson, the work should be carried out with reasonable care and skill. This requirement will include the need for work to comply with Building Regulations.
10. Building Regulation approval can be granted by a local authority or an independent approved inspector. Some types of works can be ‘self-certified’, through the government’s Competent Person Scheme.
11. Mr X put in Planning and Building Regulations applications for a single storey extension to his home. The Council granted conditional planning permission.
12. The Council carried out the first building control inspection when the foundations had been dug and the builder was about to pour the concrete.
13. The Council says the officer expressed concern about the depth of the foundations and the lack of a methane barrier. Despite the officer’s advice, the foundations were completed.
14. Mr X and the Council exchanged correspondence over the next couple of months about the suitability of the foundations. Mr X then told the Council he was not continuing with the extension, rather he was going ahead with a conservatory. Thus, avoiding the need for building control approval.
15. However, Mr X decided to have a guardian roof on the conservatory instead. The contractor applied for Building Regulations approval to replace a conservatory roof with a guardian roof, a solid roof which requires approval. The contractor did not provide the information the Council needed, so it refused the application.
16. Council officers visited Mr X’s home. Mr X says that during the visit the officers did not identify themselves, that he and his wife felt racially harassed and that officers threatened him with prosecution. He says they told him his foundation was not strong enough for a conservatory with a guardian roof. And that, without a gas membrane, methane could poison them.
17. Mr X complained to the Council. He demanded evidence from the Council to support the officer’s opinion that the foundations are not acceptable. He wants measurements, calculations or penetrometer ground bearing test results.
18. The Council told him it does not approve the foundations and work does not comply with Building Regulation.
19. Mr X gave the Council a structural report and radon risk report. The Council says it is not satisfied with the structural report because there are differences between the report and the Councils’ records from its previous inspections. Regarding the radon gas report, the Council told Mr X it did not request this. It is concerned with a methane barrier and not a radon barrier.
20. The Council advised Mr X has the following choices:
• Replace the roof with a translucent material which will remove the need for Building Regulation approval
• Prove the existing building meets the Regulations by allowing an inspection of all relevant areas
• Ask the structural engineer who prepared the report to comment on the errors identified by the Council; or
• Take no action which will result in the Council taking enforcement action against him

Assessment

21. A local authority has a general duty to enforce the Building Regulations in its area and will seek to do so by informal means wherever possible. Mr X requires approval for the work he carried out at his home. The Council’s officers have explained it is not satisfied that the work meets the Regulations. It has told him the options available to him. If he chooses not to take any action to comply with Building Regulations, the Council can prosecute him in the Magistrates Court.
22. I understand Mr X disagrees with the officers’ opinions. However, the Ombudsman cannot question the professional opinion of officers where there is no evidence of administrative fault. The Council’s duty is to inspect the work at various stages. In this case it inspected the property and told Mr X it is not satisfied with the foundations. It has explained why it is not satisfied. Mr X wants evidence to support the Council’s view. However, there is no requirement for it to provide the information he is looking for.
23. Mr X has provided details of other prior approval applications for other properties where he lives. He says this is evidence of double standards. And he says the Council has racially discriminated against him because of the colour of his skin.
24. Each application must be considered on its own merits. The details Mr X has provided are for prior approval applications, not Building Regulation applications. So I cannot see why this is evidence to suggest the Council is treating Mr X’s application differently to any other case. And, having considered all the information provided by Mr X and the Council, I have not seen any evidence that suggests racial discrimination.

Back to top

Final decision

25. I will not investigate this complaint. This is because we are unlikely to find fault, it is unlikely an investigation will lead to a different outcome. And we cannot achieve the outcome Mr X is seeking.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman