Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the location of a parking bay. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now. We are also unlikely to find fault in the Council’s actions.

The complaint

1. Mr Y complains about the location of a parking bay outside his property. He says the parking bay obstructs access to a drainage chamber, which places his property at risk.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. 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)

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))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

6. Mr Y raised concerns to the Council about the location of a parking bay outside of his property. He said the parking bay obstructed access to a drainage chamber. The Council considered removing the parking bay altogether. It publicly consulted on this in early 2022 and decided not to remove the bay. However, the Council did agree to remark the bay. It says the edge of the parking bay is now situated approximately 20cm from the closest edge of the drainage chamber. It says this is the furthest away from the drainage chamber the bay can be situated, without impacting traffic movement.
7. We expect a person to complain to us within 12 months of being aware of a matter. Mr Y was aware of the Council’s position and decision regarding the location of the parking bay in 2022, but he did not complaint to us until 2026. This complaint is late, and there is not good reason to investigate it as Mr Y could have complained to the Ombudsman sooner.
8. I understand Mr Y is unhappy with the Council’s decision. However, even if the complaint was not late, we would not investigate it. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault in the Council’s actions to justify our involvement. The Council properly considered the position of the parking bay when reaching its decision. When it decided not to remove the bay altogether, it agreed to remarking it. It does not accept that the parking bay’s new position obstructs or limits access to the drainage chamber. It was entitled to use its professional judgment to decide the position of the drainage chamber is acceptable.
9. The Ombudsman is not an appeal body. This means we do not take a second look at a decision to decide if it was wrong. Instead, we look at the processes an organisation followed to make its decision. If we consider it followed those processes correctly, we cannot question whether the decision was right or wrong, regardless of whether somebody disagrees with the decision the organisation made.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate Mr Y’s complaint because it is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate it now. We are also unlikely to find fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman