Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s delay in responding to Mr X’s complaint about a road closure. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council in relation to the closure itself and any fault in the handling of Mr X’s complaint about the matter did not cause significant enough injustice to warrant investigation.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has failed to properly deal with his complaint about a road closure. He says this caused him stress and inconvenience.

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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 effect 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 an investigation if we decide the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. We will not normally investigate complaints about complaints handling unless we are going to look at the substantive issue complained about. This is because it is not a good use of public resources to do so. Any concerns about the handling of a complaint are unlikely by themselves to cause such significant injustice to warrant investigation separately from the matter which prompted the original complaint.
6. In this case Mr X complained to the Council about road closures affecting the northbound slip road of Suffolk Street Queensway. The Council responded to Mr X in September 2024 explaining the reasons behind the closure and confirming it had applied for a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order (TTRO) for the closure, which it intended to extend.
7. It is not for us to question the Council’s reasons for closing the road or the wider development and traffic management schemes which have made it necessary. The TTRO allowed the Council to close the road and the courts are better placed to decide whether there were any flaws in the process of applying for it.
8. Mr X does not claim any such flaws and while I appreciate Mr X is unhappy with the Council’s handling of his complaint about the closure we will not investigate this separately. This is because Mr X knew the road was closed and any lack of explanation from the Council about the closure did not alter the situation or cause Mr X significant injustice.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council concerning the road closure itself and any delay in responding to Mr X about the closures did not cause him significant enough injustice to warrant investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman