The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We cannot investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s lack of parking enforcement on his housing estate. This is because the law does not allow us to investigate complaints about the Council’s management of social housing.
The complaint
The complainant, Mr X, complains the Council has failed to take effective enforcement action against the owner of a vehicle who parks on his estate without a valid permit, reducing the amount of spaces available for other residents.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
We cannot investigate complaints about the provision or management of social housing by a council acting as a registered social housing provider. (Local Government Act 1974, paragraph 5A schedule 5, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Because Mr X’s complaint concerns the Council’s parking enforcement activities on a housing estate the exclusion set out at Paragraph 3 applies. We cannot therefore investigate the matter further.
Final decision
We cannot investigate this complaint. This is because we have no power to investigate complaints about the Council’s management of social housing.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman