London Borough of Redbridge (26 001 787)
Category : Transport and highways > Parking and other penalties
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 16 Jul 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s decision to refuse his application for a dropped kerb. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault.
The complaint
- Mr X complains the Council did not consider his personal circumstances when it refused his application for a dropped kerb.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- 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))
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X applied for a dropped kerb. The Council refused his application because the width between a tree and the property boundary was significantly less than the minimum requirement within its policy.
- Mr X appealed. He explained the difficulties he was having accessing his driveway due to parking issues. The Council considered the circumstances Mr X described and explained it must comply with highway safety, visibility and infrastructure requirements.
- 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.
- I will not investigate this complaint. In making its decision, the Council took account of legislation, its own policy and information provided by Mr X. It followed the appropriate procedures when making this decision. Therefore, I cannot criticise it.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman