Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s handling of Mr X’s complaints about anti - social behaviour in his block. This is because it was reasonable for Mr X to ask the Council for an appeal.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about suffering from anti social behaviour in his block of flats. He says the Council has failed to act on the request for a Community Trigger.
2. He would like the Ombudsman to investigate the allocations of properties as he believes a high number of substance abusers have been placed in his block.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
4. 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)
5. 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:

• it would be reasonable for the person to ask for a council review or appeal;

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

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

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My assessment

8. We cannot look at the response of the Council’s housing company to Mr X’s complaints. This is because we have no remit to consider the Council’s actions as a landlord. However we can look at the actions of the Council under its community Trigger procedure.
9. The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 introduced a mechanism to review the handling of complaints of anti-social behaviour (ASB). This is commonly known as the ‘Community Trigger’ process. When a person requests a review, relevant bodies (which may include the council, police and others) should decide whether the local threshold has been met.
10. If the threshold has been met, the relevant bodies should undertake the review. They should share information, consider what action has already been taken, decide whether more should be done, and then inform the complainant of the outcome. If they decide to take more action, they should create an action plan. It is for relevant local bodies to agree their review threshold, but the ASB statutory guidance says this should be, at a maximum, that a complainant has made three reports of ASB within six months.
11. We can only consider councils’ actions in an ASB case review. Any contribution made by other relevant bodies, such as the police, is not in our jurisdiction.
12. In response to Mr X’s request for a Community Trigger the Council organised a Multi-agency panel ‘Case Review’ meeting. It reviewed the available evidence and found one address was causing noise nuisance via music and arguing. And two other neighbours as well as Mr X had complained. It found there was no evidence the property complained about was being used as a ‘drug den. It found action had been taken against the tenant complained of who was no longer residing there. It advised the Council and Police will continue to monitor the situation. And it offered Mr X an opportunity to appeal the findings.
13. We will not investigate as it would have been reasonable for Mr X to appeal. And we are unlikely to find evidence of the Council acting with fault to justify Mr X’s request to look into the general allocation of housing.

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Final decision

14. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it was reasonable for him to appeal.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman