London Borough of Barnet (24 016 049)
Category : Environment and regulation > Antisocial behaviour
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 27 Feb 2025
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about how the Council considered anti-social behaviour. That is because the complaint is late.
The complaint
- Miss X complained the Council has failed to take action against her neighbour for anti-social behaviour (ASB). She said it also failed to support her after she provided it evidence and a statement about her neighbour’s actions. She said she experiences harassment. She wants the Council to repair damage she says it has caused to her reputation.
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 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)
- 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 the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint the Council failed to address her neighbour’s anti-social behaviour (ASB) and did not provide her support after she made a statement about their behaviour. The Council’s complaint response confirms the events Miss X complains about occurred between 2022 – 2023, including its decision the ASB did not meet the criteria for the Community Trigger. Miss X did not complain to the Ombudsman until December 2024, therefore her complaint is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to consider it now.
- Additionally, Miss X and her neighbour are both council tenants. Any complaints about how the Council has acted as a social landlord are outside of our jurisdiction. Therefore, we cannot investigate any complaints Miss X has around the positioning of doorbells, disputes around fencing, or action the Council’s Housing Service has taken around her complaints. The Housing Ombudsman deals with complaints where the Council is acting as a social landlord.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because it is late.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman