Summary: We will not investigate this late complaint about the Council’s decision to prohibit driving on a section of road near Mr X’s home. There is not a good reason for the delay in Mr X complaining to us after the restriction came into effect in 2024. Investigation of more recent events alone would not achieve a different outcome.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about a traffic restriction installed by the Council. Mr X said the restriction affected his ability to park his vehicle and access his property, and caused significant inconvenience. He wanted the Council to allow affected residents an exemption so they could access the road without restriction.

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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)
4. 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:

• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• 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

5. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
6. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

7. The Council made a Traffic Management Order in early 2024, restricting driving on a section of road next to the road Mr X lives on. Exemptions were included, such as for emergency vehicles and bicycles.
8. The restricted section was previously the shortest route by which Mr X could drive from the front entrance of his house to the back entrance. Mr X says this would be particularly important when looking for a parking space, as he says on-road parking is limited. He says driving from the front to the back of his house can take significantly longer now due to the alternative route being far longer.
9. The law says people must complain to us within 12 months of finding out about the matter, unless there is good reason. The restrictions initially came into effect in mid-2024, at which time Mr X became aware of the matter and how it impacted him. Mr X complained to us in early 2026. There is not a good reason for this delay and we will not now investigate how the Council made its original decision in 2024.
10. Mr X asked the Council in 2025 to consider providing an exemption to the restrictions for residents of his road. The Council decided not to allow an exemption.
11. Further investigation by us is unlikely to achieve a different outcome. We are not an appeal body. The Council is entitled to decide not to provide an exemption, and we cannot change a council’s decision where it has been properly made. In any event, Mr X’s claimed injustice would arise substantively from the decision of 2024, rather than from the peripheral events of 2025. It is not proportionate to investigate the events of 2025 in isolation.

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Final decision

12. We will not investigate Mr X’s late complaint because there is not a good reason for the delay in him complaining to us. Investigation of more recent events in isolation would not achieve a different outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman