How to complain about your council as a tenant

If you are a council tenant and something has gone wrong with your home or tenancy, you have a clear path to put things right. The process is the same as for other social landlords: make a formal Stage 1 complaint to your council, escalate to Stage 2 if you are not satisfied, and then take your case to the Housing Ombudsman if the council still does not resolve it. Our index holds 16,224 published Housing Ombudsman decisions across 603 landlords — including councils — so you can check your landlord's record before you complain.

Council tenants sometimes worry that because their landlord is a local authority, the complaints process is different. It is not. Councils that are members of the Housing Ombudsman scheme must follow the same Complaint Handling Code as housing associations. That means the same time limits, the same stages, and the same right to escalate to the Ombudsman. The key thing to remember is that housing complaints go to the Housing Ombudsman, not the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.

Step 1 in detail: making your Stage 1 complaint to the council

Start by putting your complaint in writing. An email is fine, but keep a copy and ask for a read receipt. Tell your council clearly what went wrong, when it happened, and what you want it to do to put things right. Ask explicitly that the complaint be logged as a formal Stage 1 complaint under the council's complaints procedure. If you only raise the issue informally — for example, a quick phone call or a conversation with a housing officer — it may not be treated as a formal complaint, and the council's time limits may not apply.

Be specific. State the dates of events, the names of any staff you spoke to, and the impact the issue has had on you. If you are complaining about repairs, include photos and any previous repair requests with dates. If the issue involves damp and mould, keep a dated log of the condition and any health effects. If you are complaining about anti-social behaviour or estate management, keep a record of incidents and any reports you have already made. The clearer your evidence, the harder it is for the council to dismiss your concerns.

Under the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code, your council must acknowledge your complaint promptly and respond within ten working days. If it needs more time, it must explain why and give you a revised date. You do not have to use a special form — a clear, dated letter or email is enough. Keep records of every contact, including photos, repair requests, and any previous correspondence. If the council tries to resolve the issue at this stage and you are satisfied, the complaint can close. But if the response is inadequate, you retain the right to escalate.

Step 2 in detail: escalating to Stage 2

If the Stage 1 response does not resolve your complaint — or you think the council did not investigate properly — you can ask for a Stage 2 review. This is the final stage of the council's internal process. At Stage 2, the council must carry out a fresh, impartial review and issue a final response within twenty working days. Some councils call this an "appeal" or a "review" — the name does not matter, but the process must meet the Ombudsman's standards.

When you escalate, explain clearly why the Stage 1 response was inadequate. Reference specific points the council missed or got wrong. Include any new evidence that has come to light since Stage 1. The Stage 2 response should address each of your concerns in full, explain the reasoning behind any decision, and set out what action the council will take. If the council upholds your complaint at Stage 2, make sure its proposed remedy is fair and complete before you accept it.

Once you receive the Stage 2 final response — or once the twenty-day deadline passes without a response — you have exhausted the council's process and can go to the Housing Ombudsman. Do not feel pressured to accept an inadequate Stage 2 response just because it is labelled "final." The Ombudsman exists precisely for situations where the landlord's own process has not put things right.

Step 3 in detail: taking your complaint to the Housing Ombudsman

The Housing Ombudsman is a free, independent service that resolves disputes between residents and social landlords — including councils. You can submit a complaint directly through the Ombudsman's website. You no longer need a "designated person" — such as an MP or local councillor — to refer your complaint. This changed in 2023, removing a barrier that previously delayed many residents from getting justice.

When you submit your complaint, include copies of your correspondence with the council, the Stage 1 and Stage 2 responses (if any), and a clear timeline of events. The Ombudsman will first check that your complaint is within its jurisdiction — for example, that the issue relates to your home or tenancy and is not already before a court. Matters that fall to another body — such as court proceedings already under way, or issues that belong to the police — may be outside the Ombudsman's scope.

Council tenants sometimes confuse the Housing Ombudsman with the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO). The distinction is important: the Housing Ombudsman deals with complaints about how your council manages your home and tenancy — repairs, allocations, anti-social behaviour, rent charges, and so on. The LGSCO deals with complaints about local authority administrative functions such as planning, council tax, or adult social care. If your complaint is about housing management, it goes to the Housing Ombudsman. If you are unsure, the Ombudsman's website has a guide to help you decide.

After accepting your complaint, the Ombudsman gathers evidence from both sides. It may ask you and the council for additional documents or clarification. The process is inquisitorial, which means the Ombudsman investigates the facts rather than acting like a court with opposing sides. You do not need legal representation, though you are welcome to seek advice from organisations such as Citizens Advice or Shelter. For a deeper look at the Ombudsman process, see our guide on how to complain to the Housing Ombudsman.

Step 4 in detail: what to expect from the Ombudsman

Once the Ombudsman has gathered enough evidence, it reaches a determination on each part of your complaint — each "complaint head." The possible outcomes range from no maladministration, meaning the council acted reasonably and in line with its obligations, through to maladministration, partial maladministration, or severe maladministration, which mean the council failed to meet its obligations in varying degrees of seriousness.

Where the Ombudsman finds against your council, it issues orders the council must comply with. These commonly include an apology, financial compensation, completing outstanding repairs or taking other specific action, reviewing a policy, changing a process, and staff training. The Ombudsman monitors whether the council complies with its orders and can publish follow-up reports if compliance is delayed. For more on how compensation is decided, see our compensation guide.

The Ombudsman's determination is not a court judgment, and you cannot appeal its final decision in the same way you would appeal a court ruling. However, the Ombudsman can re-open a case if new evidence emerges that was not available during the original investigation. Most determinations are published on the Ombudsman's website, which means the council's performance becomes part of the public record.

Housing Ombudsman or Local Government Ombudsman: which one?

This is the most common point of confusion for council tenants. Because your landlord is a local authority, it is natural to assume that complaints go to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. They do not — at least, not for housing management issues.

The Housing Ombudsman investigates complaints about how a social landlord has handled matters relating to your home or tenancy. This includes responsive repairs, damp and mould, anti-social behaviour, rent setting, service charges, estate management, allocations, and tenancy management. If your complaint is about any of these issues, the Housing Ombudsman is the right body.

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) investigates complaints about local authority administrative services — for example, planning decisions, council tax, adult social care, or school admissions. The LGSCO does not investigate housing management complaints that fall under the Housing Ombudsman scheme. If you send a housing complaint to the LGSCO by mistake, it will usually signpost you to the Housing Ombudsman, but this causes unnecessary delay. Getting the right body from the start saves time and gets your complaint resolved faster.

Check your council's Ombudsman record before you complain

Before you start your complaint, it is worth checking how your council has performed in past Housing Ombudsman decisions. Our landlords page lets you search any council or housing association and see its full decision history, including adverse findings, severe maladministration determinations, and any compensation ordered. You can also browse the worst landlords league table to see which landlords have the most adverse findings in published determinations.

Looking at past decisions can help you understand whether your issue is part of a wider pattern. For example, if your complaint is about repairs, you can see whether the Ombudsman has previously found responsive repairs failures at your council. If your complaint is about damp and mould, you can check the worst damp and mould league table to see how your council compares. This does not guarantee any outcome in your individual case, but it can help you set realistic expectations and present your case more clearly.

Based on our analysis of published decisions, London & Quadrant Housing Trust currently has the highest number of adverse findings overall. You can search any council's record on our landlords page.

Knowing your council's record also helps you decide whether to push for a particular remedy. If the Ombudsman has previously ordered your council to carry out staff training or review a policy for the same type of failing, you can reference that in your complaint. It shows the council has been told to fix this before and has not done enough to prevent the problem recurring.

If your council ignores your complaint

Sometimes councils fail to respond at all. If your council does not acknowledge your Stage 1 complaint within a reasonable time, or misses the ten-day response deadline without explanation, you do not have to wait indefinitely. Document the lack of response — note the dates you sent your complaint and any follow-up messages — and escalate to Stage 2 or go directly to the Housing Ombudsman. A reasonable time is generally understood to be the ten working days set by the Complaint Handling Code, though the Ombudsman may allow a short extension if the council explains the delay properly.

The Ombudsman can accept complaints where the council has failed to respond within a reasonable time, even if you have not technically completed the council's process. The key is to show that you gave the council a fair chance to put things right and that it failed to engage. Keep everything in writing: emails, letters, text messages, and notes of phone calls. If you spoke to someone on the phone, follow up with an email summarising what was said. This creates a paper trail that the Ombudsman can follow.

If your complaint involves urgent issues such as serious disrepair or health and safety risks, you may also need to contact your council's environmental health team while your complaint progresses. Environmental health has powers to inspect the property and require the landlord to carry out works. Our council house repairs explained guide covers your rights to repairs and how to enforce them.

Remember that going to the Ombudsman does not stop you from pursuing other remedies. If your council's failing has caused you significant loss or harm, you may want to seek independent legal advice alongside the Ombudsman route. The Ombudsman process is free and can run in parallel with other action, provided the same issue is not already before a court.

What the Complaint Handling Code means for council tenants

The Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code sets the standards every member landlord must meet — and that includes councils. A good complaints process is easy to access, acknowledges complaints promptly, keeps residents informed throughout, investigates fairly and thoroughly, and provides clear responses that explain the decision and any remedy offered. If your council falls short of these standards — for example, by failing to acknowledge your complaint, refusing to log it formally, or providing a generic response that does not address your concerns — that shortfall can itself form part of your complaint to the Ombudsman.

The Code also requires landlords to learn from complaints. This means your council should identify patterns, fix systemic problems, and tell you what it has changed as a result. If you see the same issue affecting multiple residents on your estate, or if your council repeatedly makes the same mistake, that can indicate a deeper problem that the Ombudsman will take seriously.

Understanding what the Ombudsman considers maladministration helps you frame your complaint around specific failings rather than general frustration. Unreasonable delays, poor communication, a refusal to follow policy, or a failure to keep accurate records are all common grounds for adverse findings. The more specific and evidence-based your complaint, the stronger your position — and the clearer it is for the Ombudsman to reach a fair determination.

Sources

• Housing Ombudsman Service — Make a complaint
• Housing Ombudsman Service — Complaint Handling Code and guidance
• Legislation.gov.uk — for underlying housing and tenancy legislation
• GOV.UK — for social housing regulation and resident rights

This page is an information resource and does not constitute legal advice. If you need support with your complaint, free advice is available from Citizens Advice and Shelter.