Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to issue Mr X with an anti-social behaviour warning in March 2023. This is because the complaint is a late complaint and so falls outside our jurisdiction due to the passage of time.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains about the Council’s decision to issue him with an anti-social behaviour warning in March 2023. He says what he was accused of was lies and made in retaliation because he had made a complaint about staff who work where he lives.

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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)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council, including its response to his complaint.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. The restriction highlighted at paragraph 3 applies to Mr X’s complaint.
7. The warning was issued to him by the Council in March 2023 and as we would reasonably have expected him to have complained to us about the matter sooner, the complaint falls outside our jurisdiction due to the passage of time and we will not investigate it.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman