Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has refused to help the complainant with his housing. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, says he has been homeless since 2016 and the Council has refused to help. He says the Council has discriminated against him as a disabled black man. He wants the Council to provide him with suitable accommodation.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. 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 an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Mr X and the Council. This includes the complaint correspondence and information about Mr X’s housing applications. I also considered our Assessment Code and invited Mr X to comment on a draft of this decision.

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My assessment

4. The Council accepted Mr X as homeless. This means it has a duty to provide permanent accommodation. The Council says that, according to its records, Mr X is currently in accommodation provided by the police. The Council will offer a permanent home when it has suitable accommodation to offer.
5. Mr X was on the housing register. In December the Council closed Mr X’s housing register application. The letter says it closed the application because Mr X is a perpetrator of domestic abuse. I asked the Council for further information about this. The Council told me Mr X has been issued with three police stalking order injunctions and is known to be a high risk perpetrator by the Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference.
6. The Council’s allocations policy says the Council will remove perpetrators of domestic violence from the housing register if they have been issued with an injunction. Mr X has lodged a review against the decision to remove him from the register.
7. I will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council. The Council has accepted Mr X as homeless and has a duty to provide suitable accommodation. It may take some time for the Council to find suitable permanent accommodation but if, in the interim, Mr X has nowhere to stay, he can ask the Council for temporary accommodation. According to the Council’s records Mr X is currently accommodated; if that changes he would need to update the Council.
8. The decision to remove Mr X from the housing register is consistent with the policy so there is no reason to start an investigation. We cannot overturn the decision or tell the Council it must immediately house Mr X. It is for the Council to consider his review and decide whether to change the decision and re-admit him to the housing register.
9. Finally, I have not seen anything to suggest the Council is discriminating against Mr X. It has accepted a homelessness duty and, while he cannot access the housing register, this reflects the policy and not discrimination.

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Final decision

10. We will not investigate this complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman