Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the actions of the Council in relation to a boundary dispute. This is because we will not be able to achieve the outcomes requested by the complainants.

The complaint

1. Mr Y is a solicitor. He complains on behalf of his clients, Mr and Mrs X, about the actions of the Council’s anti-social behaviour team. He says it misunderstood the legal position over Mr and Mrs X’s legal right to access land. The land in question was where their neighbour parked their car triggering the dispute.
2. Mr Y also says the Council instructed the Police to issue Mr X with a warning potentially leaving them under threat of a criminal prosecution.
3. Mr Y would like the Council to arrange for the Police to withdraw the warnings, pay compensation for distress and for having to pay legal fees.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. The Ombudsman investigates 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 may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide we cannot achieve the outcomes requested. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

7. The Ombudsman will not investigate as we cannot achieve the outcomes requested.
8. The Police’s actions to issue a written warning under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 are not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction. I note Mr Y says the Police acted on the instructions of the Council. The Council has denied this.
9. I note that while the Council had powers under the same Act to issue a warning it did not do so. The Police made the decision under the powers available to it and we cannot arrange for the warning to be withdrawn.
10. Further, the Ombudsman will not recommend the Council pays compensation for distress and legal fees for the reasons outlines below.
11. Firstly, I note the Council has recently admitted it did not fully consider Mr and Mrs X’s rights to access the area in question. But it says this new information does not invalidate its and the Police’s actions taken as overall it found Mr and Mrs X’s neighbours had suffered harassment. So, I cannot achieve a remedy from the Council for Mr and Mrs X’s distress.
12. Secondly, I note neither the Council’s complaints procedures nor the Ombudsman’s service require complaints to be made by solicitors. Both services are free and easy to access.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate Mr and Mrs X’s complaint because we cannot achieve the outcomes requested.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman