Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the way the complainant’s flat is named or numbered. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault and injustice. In addition, part of the complaint is too old to be investigated and one issue forms part of a separate complaint to the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, complains about the way the Council plans to re-name her flat. She also complains about a change that was made in 1973 and says the Council took too long to end the confusion created by the change. She is unhappy with the way the Council responded to her concerns.

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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 an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement.

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

3. We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I read the complaint and email exchanges between Ms X and the Council. I found out the results of a recent consultation and considered comments Ms X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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What I found

5. Ms X moved into her home last year. Ms X says the Council changed the flat/street naming system for the flats in 1973. She says the Council should revert to the system used before 1973. She says residents use a mixture of different naming conventions for the flats which causes confusion. She also says the landlord does not follow the system established in 1973.
6. The Council says it has, from time to time, received complaints about the street numbering. It confirmed that the landlord, on tenancy agreements and other official documents, has not used the correct format.
7. I have seen correspondence from the Residents’ Association. It says that many residents are happy with the current naming system and do not want anything to change.
8. The Council recently sent all the residents a choice of three options regarding what naming system to use. Most residents chose option C. Ms X did not choose any of the options but instead made her own proposal which was to return to the pre-1973 format. Ms X says the Council should have included this as one of the options. The Council is considering a complaint from Ms X about this.
9. The Council will implement option C as that is the proposal supported by most residents who responded to the consultation.
10. Ms X wants an investigation into why the format was changed in 1973. She also says the Council allowed the confusing situation to go on for too long and she wants the Council to return to the original format. She is unhappy with the way the Council has responded to her concerns.

Assessment

11. The Ombudsman service started in 1974. This means I cannot investigate matters which arose before 1974 and I cannot investigate the decision to change the format in 1973.
12. Most residents have chosen option C. Ms X disagrees and wanted the Council to include a fourth option. I will not comment on this as Ms X has made a separate complaint to the Council about that issue.
13. It is not fault for a council to seek the views of residents and then implement the majority view. The fact that the Council is not doing what Ms X would like is not an indication of fault. The Ombudsman does not act as an appeal body and it is not his role to tell a council what street naming format to use.
14. Ms X says the Council took too long to end the confusion of people using different formats since 1973. However, as Ms X only moved in during 2018 this has not caused an injustice which requires an investigation. In addition, while she says that some of her post could have gone missing, this is not evidence of injustice. There is also nothing to suggest that the way the Council has responded has caused an injustice.
15. Ms X says option C will create problems. But, the Ombudsman does not investigate problems that have not happened. If Ms X finds that the new format causes problems she would need to make a new complaint to the Council.

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Final decision

16. I will not start an investigation because there is insufficient evidence of fault and injustice and because part of the complaint is too old to be investigated. In addition, Ms X has made a separate complaint to the Council about the options presented in the consultation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman