Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about parking enforcement on a road near his home. This is because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained the Council did not enforce parking regulations on a road near his home. He said the Council did not complete the actions it set out in its complaint response.
2. Mr X was also unhappy with the Council’s handling of his complaint.
3. He said daily use of the road caused him delays also stress and worry for his safety. Mr X wants the Council to take action to resolve the issue and keep him updated on progress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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 further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. Mr X complained the Council failed to enforce parking regulations on a road near his home.
8. The Council responded to Mr X’s concerns and said it would undertake a review of its enforcement strategy. It said it would establish if it was feasible to implement an additional action plan for the area.
9. Mr X asked the Council to explain its poor historic complaint handling. The Council apologised and accepted that previous contact with the service had not received satisfactory follow-up. It said it would complete a service review and provide a summary of its findings to Mr X.
10. It also said it would update him once any improvements were identified and include a provisional timeline for completion.
11. Mr X said the Council did not complete the above agreed actions. During our enquiries the Council said it had scheduled completion of actions later in this financial year.
12. We will not investigate this complaint. Based on the evidence I have seen, the Council offered a proportionate response to Mr X’s complaint. It acknowledged his previous complaints were not responded to adequately. It made commitments to carry out reviews and action any identified outcomes once public consultations had taken place and funding agreed. Therefore, further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.
13. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s actions to warrant an investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman