InformationComplaint outcomes

Building Control

29 August 2023 - Complaint reference 23 006 289

Mr X complained about the Council’s handling of a building control matter. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s application of building regulations. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. There is not enough evidence of fault in the Council’s actions to justify an investigation.

Car Parks

14 June 2023 - Complaint reference 23 005 218

Mr X complained about the type of Electric Vehicle (EV) charging point installed in the Council’s area. Mr X is unhappy the chargers use a particular type of charging plug (CCS). This is not compatible with Mr X’s own EV, which uses a different type of plug (CHAdeMo). The Ombudsman will not start an investigation into Mr X’s complaint. This is because the Council has offered a proportionate and reasonable response to Mr X’s complaint.

28 January 2022 - Complaint reference 21 014 147

Mr B complains about the Council’s handling of his compensation claim after his car was damaged. He says the Council failed to give proper consideration to the merits of his claim or consider settlement negotiations. Mr B says this meant he was forced to start court proceedings which eventually resulted in the Council offering to settle his claim in full and pay his court costs. Mr B would like the Council to pay him compensation - in line with its own legal fees - for the avoidable time and inconvenience he has been put through. The Ombudsman cannot investigate Mr B’s complaint about the Council’s consideration of his compensation claim. This is because Mr B took the Council to court.

Corporate Services

13 January 2026 - complaint reference 25 014 874

Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s refusal to investigate the behaviour of a Parish Councillor. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify an investigation. Ombudsman cannot investigate the actions of Parish Councils.

13 December 2021 - Complaint reference 21 010 949

Mr X who is a councillor, complained about the conduct of three other councillors which he considered was a breach of the Members’ Code of Conduct. He says the councillors carried out intimidating behaviour and the Council failed to investigate his complaint. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about a complaint concerning the conduct of three councillors. There is insufficient evidence of any fault in the way the complaint was investigated by the Monitoring Officer.

Council Tax & Benefits

9 January 2026 - Complaint reference 25 018 164

Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council not paying housing benefit. This is mainly because it is reasonable to expect Ms X to have appealed to the tribunal.

23 April 2025 - Complaint reference 25 000 204

Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about an empty homes premium because there was a right of appeal to Valuation Tribunal.

6 December 2021 - Complaint reference 21 011 192

Mr X complains that the Council will not award a council tax discount on his property. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint because there is a right of appeal to a Valuation Tribunal.

13 October 2021 - Complaint reference 21 006 694

Ms X says the Council is using aggressive tactics to recover council tax arrears. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the way the Council is trying to recover council tax arrears from the complainant. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

Development control

4 November 2025 - Complaint reference 25 007 596

Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a planning application for a development near his home. There is not enough evidence of fault to justify our involvement. The Ombudsman also cannot achieve the outcome the complainant wants.

15 September 2025 - Complaint reference 24 019 452

Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about planning advice as there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.

17 July 2025 - Complaint reference 25 004 901

Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s consideration of a planning application. The complaint is late and there is no good reason to exercise discretion to consider it now.

27 June 2025 - Complaint reference 24 010 864

Mr X complained about flooding from a nearby development which he said has not been completed in line with the original planning permission. He also complained about delays by the Council in addressing the matter. Mr X and other residents have suffered ongoing flood water damage to their properties. We found there were significant delays before the Council approved changes to the landscaping and drainage on site, causing Mr X frustration and uncertainty. The Council agreed to apologise and make a symbolic payment to Mr X for this. We found no fault in the Council’s planning enforcement investigation or decision-making on the changes.

2 June 2025 - Complaint reference 25 000 081

Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about planning permission because there is a right of appeal to a Planning Inspector and the Council has remedied any alleged fault.

16 April 2025 - Complaint reference 24 009 117

Mr X complained about the Councils role in approving and assessing a neighbouring property’s building work. We found the Council to be at fault. Mr X suffered undue time and trouble. The Council should apologise to Mr X and make a symbolic payment to him. The Council should arrange relevant training for its staff.

3 November 2023 - Complaint reference 23 010 381

Mr X complains the Council refused to consider the points he made when requesting that an objection to his planning application be removed from the planning pages on its website. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to allow a written representation to remain on its planning portal. This is because the complaint does not meet the tests in our Assessment Code on how we decide which complaints to investigate. The complaint is late, and it is not unreasonable to expect the complainant to have come to us much sooner.

26 May 2022 - Complaint reference 22 002 178

Mr X complains the Council granted planning permission for two developments on the street where he lives without considering the impact on access to private land and neighbouring properties. Mr X says this has affected the quality of life of local people. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to grant planning permission for developments on the street where Mr X lives. This is because he has not been caused an injustice.

26 April 2022 - Complaint reference 22 000 319

Mr X complained about the Council’s failure to take action over unauthorised development by his neighbour. He also says he was subject to excessive noise when the approved works took place. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to take sufficient enforcement action over a breach of planning regulations. There is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

18 February 2022 - Complaint reference 21 014 281

Mr B has complained that the Council has failed to deal with planning breaches at an anaerobic digester near is home. He also says it has not addressed nuisance from a nearby pig farm. The Ombudsman will not investigate how the Council has dealt with the complainant’s concerns about an anaerobic digester and a pig farm as they are unlikely to find there has been fault by the Council.

10 February 2022 - Complaint reference 21 005 635

Mr B complained about the Council’s handling of an application for prior approval for permitted development. He said the Council did not publicise the application properly or address his objections before granting approval. The Ombudsman found there was no fault by the Council.

31 January 2022 - Complaint reference 21 013 444

Miss X complains about flooding on an allotment she rents. She says the Council should not have signed off the allotments as they are not fit for purpose and that it should carry out work to improve drainage on the site. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint that the Council handed over allotments to the Town Council before they were up to specification. This is because the events happened too long ago, and we cannot achieve the outcome the complainant seeks.

14 September 2021 - Complaint reference 21 005 481

Mrs X complained that the Council had not taken formal enforcement action against a developer for a breach of planning control. She also complained it failed to keep proper records of past planning applications. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of a planning enforcement matter. This is because there is no evidence of fault in its approach. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council’s failure to provide details of a previous application as it would be reasonable for her to take the matter to court.

25 August 2021 - Complaint reference 21 005 134

Ms B complained about the Council’s decision that her neighbour’s demolition of their veranda does not require planning permission. She says it contradicts permitted development rules and its previous correspondence with her. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the Council's decision not to require a planning application for demolishing a veranda. They do not consider the complainant has suffered a significant personal injustice which warrants investigating.

15 July 2021 - Complaint reference 20 010 254

Mr and Mrs C complained about the actions of the Council in approving two prior notification applications for development near their listed property. We cannot find fault with the decision-making process.

9 June 2021 - Complaint reference 21 000 709

Mrs B complained about the way the Council dealt with her applications for pre-application advice and planning permission. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs B’s complaint about the way the Council dealt with her applications for pre-application advice and planning permission. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault by the Council to warrant an investigation.

1 June 2021 - Complaint reference 20 008 377

Mr X complained the Council failed to properly consider the effects on his solar panels when approving planning permission. The Ombudsman determined there was no fault in how the Council considered the effect on Mr X’s solar panels. There was fault in how the Council explained its ability to control the development, but this did not cause an injustice to Mr X.

Environmental Health

4 August 2025 - complaint reference 25 004 748

Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about a Public Spaces Protection Order. That is because the complaint is late.

Housing Service

30 October 2025 - complaint reference 202403535

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports about damp and mould in the property and reports about a damaged fence post. The Ombudsman found fault with the council in its handling of the resident's repairs, finding evidence of lengthy delays in the remedial work to address the damp and mould in the kitchen. There were also delays in the council arranging repairs to the resident’s fence post and she had to progress her complaint before the council raised the works. Neither did the council comply with its own policy in its response to the resident’s complaints. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise in writing to the resident and to make a payment to her for £825.

3 October 2025 - complaint reference 202447490

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports of subsidence and broken fencing in the rear garden, heating upgrade, reimbursement for energy costs, insufficient insulation, poorly fitted windows, door, damp and mould, request for a transfer and staff visits without notice or ID. The Ombudsman agreed that the council had made reasonable redress in the resident’s reports of insufficient insulation, defective windows and doors and damp and mould as well as the resident’s concerns about staff visiting unannounced and without appropriate ID. All other issues the Ombudsman found no fault with the council's actions. The council was ordered to pay the sum offered at stage 2 of £400 as reasonable redress.

12 August 2025 - complaint reference 202441976

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports of damp and mould and the landlord’s complaint handling. The lack of record-keeping would have contributed to delays in progressing the work and the council should have maintained accurate records of all inspections to make sure it could take appropriate action in a reasonable time limit. The Ombudsman determined that the council did not fully address the resident’s concerns within its responses and there was a delay in the stage 2 response being sent. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise in writing to the resident and to make a payment to her for £550.

5 August 2025 - complaint reference 202324234

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports of antisocial behaviour (ASB). The Ombudsman found fault with the council in its handling of the resident's complaints, causing distress and inconvenience by not addressing the ASB reports in a reasonable timeframe and delays in responding to the complaint within the council’s published timescales. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise in writing to the resident and to make a payment to her for £300 as well as contacting the resident regarding her concerns with ongoing ASB issues.

31 July 2025 - complaint reference 202438735

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports of various repair issues including damp and mould and concerns about various welfare issues, including allegations of unfair treatment by the council’s officers. The Ombudsman determined that the council was at fault in regard to the response to the resident’s reports of various repair issues including damp and mould, her related concerns about various welfare issues, including allegations of unfair treatment by the landlord’s officers and Complaint handling. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise in writing to the resident and to make a payment to her for £850 as well as raising a new complaint about unfair treatment by officers, update the resident on her Disrepair claim, consider refund of taxi fares, ensure systems are up to date with tenant's vulnerabilities, and review its policies and practice around damage/liability claims.

30 June 2025 - complaint reference 202437033

The resident complained about the council’s handling of reports of damp and mould in the kitchen, the standard of the work that the landlord completed to the ceilings in the property and the standard of the replacement work to the front and rear doors. The Ombudsman determined that the complaint regarding the damp and mould was outside their jurisdiction as it was not part of the stage 1 complaint. The ombudsman determined there was no maladministration with the council’s response to the resident’s reports about the standard of the ceiling repairs. The ombudsman have found that there was a service failure in the council’s handling of the resident’s reports about the standard of the replacement work to the front and rear doors. The council initially took the appropriate action to investigate the issue. However it did not provide the agreed resolution within a reasonable time. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to make a payment to the resident for £50.

1 May 2025 - complaint reference 202408160

The resident complained about the council’s handling of repairs to the guttering at the property and the council's complaint handling. The Ombudsman determined that there had been maladministration in terms of the repair to the gutter, including lengthy delays, poor communication and incomplete work. The Ombudsman determined that there had been service failure with respect to the council's complaint handling, as the stage 1 was not responded to. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to make a payment to the resident for £300, provide a start date for the gutter repairs and apologise in writing to the resident.

30 April 2025 - complaint reference 202341433

The resident complained that the council had failed to carry out repairs to the hallway floor. The Ombudsman found fault with the council for its repair of the hallway floor, of its communication with the resident, not responding to the complaint within published timescales and not offering any remedy in the form of compensation for these failures. The council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise in writing to the resident for its handling of repairs to the hallway floor and make a payment to her for £700.

1 August 2023 - complaint reference 24 016 593

The resident complained the Council has failed to take sufficient action when she reported anti-social behaviour from her neighbour. The Ombudsman found that the Council was at fault for its poor communication with the resident and its delays in reviewing the file and deciding how to proceed. This has caused the resident distress, frustration and uncertainty. The Council has agreed to the Ombudsman's recommendations to apologise to the resident, make a payment to her and implement a service improvement.

14 June 2023 - complaint reference 202220645

Mr X believed that the council had not done enough to remedy the noise generated by the ASHP heating system installed in his property. The Housing Ombudsman determined that the landlord responded appropriately to the landlord’s reports and complaints. It arranged inspections by relevant operatives, who were not able to identify any clear problems with the heating system. The landlord then went above its obligations by arranging to install a new system anyway, in an effort to address the resident’s concerns. These actions were reasonable and in line with good practice and customer service. The Housing Ombudsman determined that there was no maladministration by the landlord in respect of the complaint.

23 March 2022 - complaint reference 21 007 341

Mrs X complains the Council has failed to take sufficient action to stop a resident from feeding birds which is causing a nuisance. The Council is at fault as its investigation drifted. This is because it did not consider if the investigation should be carried out by its Environmental Health Team when its Housing Management Team could not progress the investigation. This caused frustration and uncertainty to Mrs X. The Council has agreed to remedy this injustice by apologising to Mrs X and drawing up an action plan to ensure its investigations do not continue to drift.

23 March 2022 - complaint reference 202106350

Mr X complains the Council has failed to take action in relation to issues with ASB in the area and odours coming from the property below. The Ombudsman has found that there was service failure by the landlord in its response to the resident’s reports of an odour from his neighbour’s property and there was maladministration by the landlord in its response to the resident’s reports of ASB in the local area as well as a service failure by the landlord in its handling of the associated complaint. The landlord has been ordered to pay the resident £300 in compensation as follows: £150 compensation for its failures in the handling of his reports of ASB; £50 compensation for its failures in the handling of his reports of an odour from Mr A’s property and £100 compensation for its failures in the handling of his complaint.

11 March 2022 - complaint reference 202011713

Ms X complains the Council has failed to take sufficient action to deal with issues of ASB from a neighbour. The Ombudsman has found that there was service failure by the landlord in respect of its response to the resident’s reports of ASB from her neighbour and there was service failure by the landlord in respect of its handling of the associated complaint. The landlord is ordered to pay the resident £300 compensation, broken down as follows: £250 in recognition of the inconvenience and distress caused by its handling of the resident’s ASB reports and £50 in recognition of the inconvenience caused by its poor complaint handling.

7 March 2022 - complaint reference 202114420

Mrs X complains the Council has failed to install a new kitchen within a reasonable timeframe causing distress and inconvenience to the tenant delaying the tenant's occupation of the property. The Ombudsman has found that there was maladministration by the landlord in respect of its handling of the kitchen replacement and there was a service failure in the landlord’s complaints handling. The landlord has been ordered to the pay the resident £500 compensation in recognition of the failures identified, £400 in relation to the kitchen replacement issues and £100 in relation to the complaints handling issues. The landlord must also review its record keeping policies and procedures to ensure that detailed and accurate records are maintained of its interactions with residents and internal discussions, including copies of agreements, notes of telephone calls and copies of emails and written correspondence. The landlord must also review its complaints handling process to ensure that it is able to evidence all information accessed in the course of its complaints investigation and relied on in its responses.

31 January 2022 - complaint reference 202100382

Miss X complains the Council has failed to carry out repairs to the property within a reasonable timeframe. The Ombudsman has found that there was maladministration by the landlord in respect of its handling of external repairs to the resident’s property and has been ordered to pay the resident £350 compensation for the failures identified in this report and to provide the resident with a written update on outstanding works and a written explanation of its decision not to install a soakaway.

16 February 2022 - complaint reference 21 014 705

The Local Government Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the complainant’s banding on the housing register. This is because the Council has moved the complainant’s application into a higher band.

18 August 2021 - complaint reference 202011449

The Ombudsman has found that there was no maladministration by the landlord in its handling of the resident’s reports of anti-social behaviour caused by her neighbour because the landlord complied with its anti-social behaviour policy by offering mediation, requesting diary sheets, logging an anti-social behaviour case, which remained open following the completion of the complaint investigation, installing noise monitoring equipment at the resident’s property on two occasions, and issuing the neighbour with a warning about their behaviour.

Private Sector Housing

15 July 2025 - Complaint reference 24 023 167

Ombudsman will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council’s handling of his disabled facilities grant application. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault causing sufficient injustice to justify our involvement.

Recycling and Waste

20 August 2021 - Complaint reference 21 005 079

Mr B complains the Council has missed 8 refuse/recycling collections over an unspecified period. He says the Council has taken his money for the refuse collection service but failed to deliver. He wants to be paid his hourly rate for the 8 occasions he had to contact the Council. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about missed refuse/recycling collections. The complainant has not suffered sufficient personal injustice to warrant their involvement. And they cannot achieve the outcome he is seeking.