Summary: The complainant, Ms G, said Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Hertfordshire County Council failed to properly plan her discharge from hospital and provide her with formal support after she was discharged from hospital. Ms G said this had an adverse impact on her wellbeing. She also said Watford Borough Council failed to consider her homelessness and housing application properly which meant she remained in unsuitable accommodation for too long. On the evidence available the Ombudsmen found no fault in the way the Borough Council dealt with Ms G’s homelessness situation. There were faults in the way the Trust discharged Ms G from hospital and both it and the County Council failed to assess all her needs once she was in the community and this had adverse impact on Ms G’s wellbeing. The Trust and the County Council have agreed to the Ombudsmen’s recommendations and will apologise to Ms G and pay her a financial remedy to acknowledge the adverse impact the faults had on her wellbeing. The Trust and the County Council will act to improve discharge planning and the requirement to complete formal assessments in line with the Care Act 2014.

Summary: There was fault in the way the Council carried out the homelessness prevention duty when Mrs X was threatened with homelessness. This caused Mrs X some extra worry and distress at a difficult time in her life. The Council has agreed to provide a suitable remedy.

Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council’s refusal to give her housing application a higher priority for medical reasons. The Ombudsman should not exercise his discretion to investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint concerns decisions which were taken in 2017 and the complaint was not made within the normal 12-month period for accepting complaints. We cannot uphold a complaint where there is no evidence of fault by a council.

Summary: Miss X complained about the Council’s consideration of her housing application banding and its decision to discharge its homeless duty towards her. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation. We cannot investigate complaints about homeless decisions where there is a right of review and appeal to the courts.

Summary: Mr B complains about the Council’s actions concerning his requests for information made under the Freedom of Information Act and its decision to seek payment of outstanding council tax arrears for a property he does not own. The Ombudsman will not investigate the complaint because both matters fall outside our jurisdiction due to the availability of appeal rights to statutory tribunals.

Summary: Mrs X complained about the Council’s decision to remove her housing priority. The Council has now reinstated Mrs X’s housing priority and so we are discontinuing our investigation.

Summary: Mr X complains the Council is acting contrary to the agreement made between them in 2010 in seeking repayment of the Repair Grant he received because he is selling a garden plot adjoining his home. The Ombudsman will not investigate the complaint because there is no evidence of fault by the Council and if Mr X disputes its decision, the courts are best placed to determine the issue.

Summary: Miss B complains about the Council’s handling of her request for housing help when she was made homeless. There was some fault by the Council. The Council delayed deciding Miss B's review against the Council’s decision on her homelessness application. The Council was also at fault for the way it considered Miss B's applications to join the Council’s housing register. The Council has agreed to take action to put right this injustice, including making a payment to Miss B.

Summary: Miss X complained about the Council’s failure to offer her permanent housing even though she has been on its housing register since 2009. The Ombudsman should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about information given to the complainant about whether she was eligible for a parking permit in a home she was considering renting. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Council.