LGO Individual Decisions

Summary: Ms X complained the Council failed to ensure her son, F, received education and provision in line with his Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan between May 2019 and September 2020 after he was unable to attend his named school. The Council was at fault. Between January 2019 and September 2020, it delayed issuing F’s final EHC Plan, delayed finding a new school for F and failed to ensure he received education and provision in line with his EHC Plan. The Council has already paid Ms X a total of £5,200 to remedy the injustice caused between September and March 2020. It agreed to pay her

Summary: Mr X complained on behalf of Y. He complained about the way the Council made decisions about Y’s Disability Related Expenditure. He said this caused the family financial hardship. We found fault with the Council which caused uncertainty about its decision. The Council agreed actions to remedy the injustice.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s Parking Services and the lack of provision of a resident parking permit for a resident living in a car-free property. This is because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s street cleaning service. This is because we are unlikely to find evidence of fault by the Council or injustice caused to Mr X sufficient to warrant an investigation.

Summary: We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint that the Council failed to identify defective building work which did not meet the building regulations. This is because an investigation would not achieve a meaningful outcome.

Summary: Ms X complained the Council failed to assist her when she asked for help to move following domestic abuse. She said its delay meant she continued to live at an address her former partner was aware of, resulting in further incidents of abuse. Ms X also complained the Council delayed in assessing her son’s medical needs. The Council was not at fault.

Summary: Mrs C said the Council was at fault for failures during its investigation of child protection concerns about her unborn child. Mrs C’s complaint was investigated under the statutory complaints procedure for children’s complaints which upheld some of her claims. We agree that the Council was at fault for failures during the investigation. The Council has agreed to make a payment to Mrs C to acknowledge her distress. It has already made service improvements.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council will not refund £22.95 the complainant paid for parking. This is because the complainant could have used his appeal rights in relation to the Penalty Charge Notice and because there is insufficient evidence of injustice.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about noise from a property below the complainant’s apartment. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about damage caused during pavement repair works. This is because the courts are better placed to deal with this complaint.

Summary: Mr X complains the Council excluded him from its housing register because he was of no fixed abode. If we were to investigate it is likely we would find fault in the way the Council dealt with Mr X’s application. Therefore we have invited the Council to remedy the injustice to Mr X and it has agreed to take the action we recommended. Further consideration of the complaint would not be proportionate.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the process for buying visitor parking vouchers. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council and insufficient evidence of injustice.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council dealt with disrepair issues in Mr X’s private rented accommodation. This is because it is a late complaint and there is no reason why Mr X could not have complained to us sooner.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to grant planning permission for an extension at a site adjoining the complainants’ properties. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. There is not enough evidence to

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision not to renew Mr X’s temporary street trader’s licence. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the complainant’s housing application. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Summary: Ms C complains the Council wrongly pursued arrears for home care charges and reneged on an agreement to fund residential care. The Council was at fault for charging for home support services without a financial assessment, delayed in completing a financial assessment and failed to consider community based alternatives for Mr D earlier. To remedy the complaint the Council has agreed to waive some home support charges, pay Ms C £300 in acknowledgement of the time, trouble and stress the Council’s faults have caused her. It will also review procedures and remind staff about the importanc

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to process a request to purchase a freehold of a property. The Ombudsman cannot investigate complaints about the management of housing let on a long lease by a Council that is a registered social housing provider.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s assessment of his housing application. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of matters associated with its decision to granting planning permission for a development opposite the complainant’s property. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. It is reasonable to expect the complainant to use the alternative remedies available to him, there is not enough evidence of fault in the way the Council determined the planning application, and we will not pursue concerns about the complaints process in isolation.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s enforcement of a penalty charge notice as Mr X has a remedy via the courts which he can reasonably use.

Summary: Mr X complains about Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) and enforcement action. We do not find fault with the Council, which followed the correct procedures.

Summary: Mr C complained the Council delayed in investigating his complaint about a noise nuisance inside the block of flats he lives in and closed the case without properly investigating the matter. There was no fault in the Council’s actions when it investigated the noise Mr C complained about.

Summary: We will not investigate this late complaint about the Council’s decision to reduce the support provided to Mr X through a care plan. Mr X could have complained to us sooner.

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council refused the complainant’s housing application and left him homeless. This is because the complaint was received outside the normal 12-month period for investigating complaints. There is no evidence to suggest that he could not have complained to us sooner. We could not now achieve the outcome he is seeking.