Housing Complaint Decisions by the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman – A roundup

The Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman has published details of its decision on housing complaints made, covering various topics, such as disrepair, allocations, interim and temporary accommodation and more. 

Although the decision here relates to complaints against local authorities, they are of course public bodies and Registered Providers of Social Housing are also treated as public bodies. The decisions can therefore be informative, help provide guidance, or in some circumstances act as a warning. 

A link to the decisions section of the website can be found here and a roundup of some recent relevant decisions are as follows: 

London Borough of Lambeth (21 010 122) 

Summary: Mr X complained that the Council did not deal effectively with a slug infestation in his temporary accommodation. Mr X said it was unsafe, caused unnecessary distress, and took him time and trouble to resolve. We find the Council at fault, and this fault caused Mr X and his family injustice. The Council will make a payment to Mr X, apologise, and make improvements to its service to prevent a recurrence. 

Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council (21 017 658) 

Summary: Mr X complained about how the Council responded to his concerns about his housing and anti-social behaviour. There was fault with how the Council responded to a noise nuisance Mr X reported and how long Mr X had to wait for a social care assessment. However, these did not cause Mr X an injustice. The Council agreed to provide training to its housing staff and review how it manages social care assessments. 

London Borough of Hillingdon (22 001 996) 

Summary: Mr B complained the Council failed to properly consider its homeless duty and his housing allocation applications. Mr B said this has prevented him from applying for housing near to his family, affected his mental and physical health and caused him delay, distress and anxiety. We do not find fault with how the Council considered Mr B’s homeless application. However, we do find fault with how the Council considered Mr B’s housing applications. This caused Mr B uncertainty. The Council has agreed to remedy the injustice caused. 

Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council (22 006 860) 

Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council refusing to pay Mr X £425 for a rent deposit on a property. This is because the Council has now agreed to make the payment.