Summary: Mr X complains about the lack of consultation by the Council in repositioning a bus shelter outside a property he owns. We will not investigate the complaint because it is unlikely we can add to the investigation already carried out by the Council and an investigation will not lead to the outcome Mr X seeks to have the shelter moved back to its original location.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I refer to as Mr X, says the Council did not make clear in its consultation or meetings that as part of wider works in the area a bus shelter would be relocated and placed in front of a property he owns and rents out to tenants. He says this prevented him from making effective representations against the move and that the shelter should be moved back to where it came from.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’ which we call ‘fault’. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
3. 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 an investigation if we decide:

• there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating, or
• any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation, or
• further investigation would not lead to a different outcome, or
• we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
6. I gave Mr X the opportunity to comment on my draft decision and considered what he said.

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My assessment

7. Mr X complained to the Council that it had not properly consulted on its plans to relocate a bus shelter to its new position outside a property he owns and rents out to tenants. He said the relocation had not been referred to or clearly indicated and so he had not been given the opportunity to protect his interests and those of his tenants.
8. The Council told Mr X that after more general consultation about the planned works in 2018, the designed works, including the new position of the bus stop and shelter, were taken back to the Local Liaison Forum for further public scrutiny in 2019 before the plans were approved.
9. Following contact from Mr X, the Council did look at whether it could relocate the shelter back to its previous location but due to the presence of a new crossing it told Mr X that this was not possible and it confirmed it had been moved to its best position.
10. While I understand Mr X does not agree with the Council’s decision to move the shelter, I do not consider an investigation by the Ombudsman would be likely to add to that already undertaken by the Council or lead to the outcome Mr X seeks. Regardless of any objections made against the repositioning of the bus shelter, ultimately this is a decision for the Council to make.
11. The Council has determined that the shelter is in its best position and that it cannot, for reasons of safety, be moved back to where it was. We cannot review the merits of this decision and an investigation would not lead to a proposal to move the shelter to a location contrary to the professional judgement of officers.
12. In responding to my draft decision Mr X has referred me to p63 of the Council’s 2019 document which he says does not indicate the bus shelter was to be relocated, refers to the existing bus stop being retained and does not accurately show the surrounding properties for reference. The Council’s view of the same p63 is that it does show the new bus shelter location, with the old bus shelter greyed out. In my view p63 does show the new bus shelter as being located in front of Mr X’s property. However, while we can accept Mr X did not find the plan clear enough, an investigation is unlikely to conclude that but for a different plan and objections from him at the time that a different outcome would have resulted.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate this complaint. This is because it is unlikely we can add to the investigation already carried out by the Council and an investigation will not lead to the outcome Mr X seeks to have the shelter moved back to its original location.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman