Wolverhampton City Council — case 202009782

REPORT COMPLAINT 202009782 Wolverhampton City Council 29 April 2021 Our approach What we can and cannot consider is called the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction and is governed by the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman must determine whether a complaint comes within their jurisdiction. The Ombudsman seeks to resolve disputes wherever possible but cannot investigate complaints that fall outside of this. In deciding whether a complaint falls within their jurisdiction, the Ombudsman will carefully consider all the evidence provided by the parties and the circumstances of the case.

The complaint The complaint is about the quality of home repairs and renovations, staff conduct, and the outcome of the resident’s insurance claim. Determination (jurisdictional decision) When a complaint is brought to the Ombudsman, we must consider all the circumstances of the case as there are sometimes reasons why a complaint will not be investigated. After carefully considering all the evidence, we have determined that the complaint, as set out above, is not within the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction.

Summary of events The landlord has explained to this Service that the resident is an owner occupier, and not a private or social landlord tenant. It explained that it completed work at the resident’s property as part of a local authority’s small works assistance grant. Reasons Paragraph 25 of the Scheme states that a person who is or has been in a landlord/tenant relationship with a member landlord, or is or has been an applicant for a property owned or managed by a member, can make complaints to the Ombudsman.

As clarified by the landlord, the resident is the owner of her property, and not one of its tenants. Because of that, the Ombudsman cannot consider her complaint. As the works to the resident’s property were carried out by the landlord as part of the local authority’s small works assistance grant, she may be able to complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO). This is because the LGSCO can look at complaints about local authority activities (apart from their responsibilities as social landlords).