Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council responded to Miss X’s complaint about parking issues close to her home. This is because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Council has not provided a solution to parking issues close to her home and has not dealt with her complaint properly. She said the parking issues prevent her ability to conduct her daily life. She wanted the Council to provide her with a personal permanent parking space and implement traffic control measures for school traffic.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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)
3. 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

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

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My assessment

6. Miss X has contacted the Council several times from 2022 onwards in relation to parking issues outside her property. The law says people must bring complaints to us within 12 months of becoming aware of the matter, unless there are good reasons. We will not now consider the Council’s decision from 2022 that parking restrictions, in addition to bollards it had installed the previous year, were not warranted. It would have been reasonable for Miss X to complain to the Council and then us at the time if she was concerned about that decision. I have considered events from May 2024 onwards.
7. Miss X contacted the Council in November 2024 when one of a pair of bollards on the pavement outside her house had been damaged. The bollards prevented cars parking on the pavement and ensured Miss X could access her property. The Council replaced the bollard in April 2025.
8. In its complaint response, the Council apologised to Miss X for the delay in replacing the bollard. It noted the bollard had not posed a safety risk in the meantime.
9. After the Council replaced the bollard, Miss X complained the new bollard did not match the existing one, and the Council had not put double yellow lines on the road outside her home.
10. In its complaint response, the Council noted the replacement bollard provided the same benefit as the original bollard. It also clarified there were no plans for double yellow lines on Miss X’s road. The Council said that it had previously considered Miss X’s request for parking restrictions outside her property. It said it had carried out four site visits at different times of the day and had not identified any issues that would warrant the introduction of parking restrictions. In its complaint response, the Council said that Miss X had not provided any new evidence that would change the Council’s view on the need for parking restrictions.
11. The Council told Miss X that her street is part of the maintainable highway and any vehicle legally entitled to be on the road can park there. It advised Miss X to report any inconsiderate parking, or parking blocking driveways to the police.
12. We will not investigate this complaint because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome. The Council apologised to Miss X for the delay in replacing the bollard. This is an appropriate action to resolve Miss X’s complaint. The Council also clarified that it had not seen evidence to change its view on parking restrictions on Miss X’s street, and signposted her to where she could report inconsiderate parking.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because further investigation would not lead to a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman