Places for People Group Limited (202340629)

Decision
Case ID	202340629
Decision type	Investigation
Landlord	Places for People Group Limited
Landlord type	Housing Association
Occupancy	Leaseholder
Date	31 March 2026

Background

The resident lives in a flat in a purpose-built block. She has previously reported concerns over non-residents gaining access to the block and causing nuisance. She has also previously reported that the main doors to the block need repair. The resident has previously raised another complaint with the landlord about these issues.

What the complaint is about

The complaint is about the landlord’s handling of the resident’s reports of:
1. Antisocial behaviour (ASB).
2. Repairs to the main doors.
We have also considered the landlord’s handling of the complaint.

Our decision (determination)

We have found that there was maladministration in the landlord’s handling of the:
1. Resident’s reports of antisocial behaviour.
2. Resident’s reports of repairs to the main doors.
3. Complaint.

We have made orders for the landlord to put things right.

Summary of reasons

The landlord did not handle the resident’s reports of ASB in line with its policy. While it took steps to resolve the issues it has not shown that it considered the level of risk to the resident or appropriately documented its investigation.
There were delays in completing the repairs needed to the main doors which appear to be due to the difficulty in obtaining parts. While this was outside the landlord’s control it could have ensured the resident was kept up to date with the steps it was taking.
The landlord failed to respond to the resident’s first complaint. While it handled the resident’s second complaint in line with its policy timescales, its responses lacked detail and did not fully answer the resident’s concerns.

Putting things right

Where we find service failure, maladministration or severe maladministration we can make orders for the landlord to put things right. We have the discretion to make recommendations in all other cases within our jurisdiction.

Orders

Landlords must comply with our orders in the manner and timescales we specify. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of compliance with our orders by the due date set.

Order	What the landlord must do	Due date
1	Apology order The landlord must apologise in writing to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure: The apology is specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic. It has due regard to our apologies guidance.	No later than 28 April 2026
2	Compensation order The landlord must pay the resident £550 made up as follows: £200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failures in the handling the resident’s reports of ASB. £200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failures in the handling the resident’s reports of repairs to the main door. £150 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the failures in the landlord’s handling of the complaint. This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date. The landlord may deduct from the total figure any payments it has already paid.	No later than 28 April 2026

Order

What the landlord must do

Due date

Apology order

The landlord must apologise in writing to the resident for the failures identified in this report. The landlord must ensure:

The apology is specific to the failures identified in this decision, meaningful and empathetic.
It has due regard to our apologies guidance.

No later than

28 April 2026

Compensation order

The landlord must pay the resident £550 made up as follows:

£200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failures in the handling the resident’s reports of ASB.
£200 for the distress and inconvenience caused by its failures in the handling the resident’s reports of repairs to the main door.
£150 for the distress and inconvenience caused by the failures in the landlord’s handling of the complaint.

This must be paid directly to the resident by the due date. The landlord must provide documentary evidence of payment by the due date.

The landlord may deduct from the total figure any payments it has already paid.

No later than

28 April 2026

Our investigation

The complaint procedure

Date	What happened
5 January 2024	The resident raised her complaint with the landlord, which was about: ASB behaviour including, smoking, noise nuisance and intimidation from non-residents who were able to access the block. The main doors to the block were insecure and the landlord has not repaired these.
18 January 2024	The landlord provided its stage 1 response. It said: It had identified a service failure. It had successfully completed 2 previous repairs to the external doors. It had raised a further inspection of the doors. There was little that it could do to prevent ASB caused by not residents, though it had reported concerns to the police when it was provided with evidence.
18 January 2024	The resident asked to escalate her complaint. She said there had been more than 2 previous reports of issues with the door and that she remained unhappy with the actions the landlord had taken to prevent antisocial behaviour.
1 February 2024	The landlord provided its stage 2 response. It said: It had received 7 reports about the external since February 2022 but no reports since November 2023. It was awaiting a report on the condition of the doors to decide what action it needed to take to resolve the issues. It had been working with the nearby school, the police, and the council to try to resolve the ASB. It did not provide any redress to the resident.
Referral to the Ombudsman	The resident came to us because the issue remained ongoing and the doors still needed to be repaired. To put things right, she wants the doors to be made secure.

What we found and why

The circumstances of this complaint are well known by the parties involved, so it is not necessary to detail everything that’s happened or comment on all the information we’ve reviewed. We’ve only included the key information that forms the basis of our decision of whether the landlord is responsible for maladministration.

Complaint	The resident’s reports of antisocial behaviour
Finding	Maladministration

The resident first reported concerns about ASB in the block in 2022 She also made a complaint about the landlord’s handling of her reports in February 2023. And had consistently been in contact with it about her concerns before raising her second complaint in January 2024.
The landlord’s ASB policy says that it applies to those causing a nuisance in communities where it owns properties and not only to residents of the landlord. It says the steps it will take to investigate reports of ASB include:
1. Completing a risk assessment at the time the ASB is reported.
2. Creating an action plan and sharing this with the resident reporting ASB.
3. Working in partnership with other agencies where appropriate.
The resident reported her concerns of ASB to the landlord on 24 December 2022. She reported further incidents on 15 March 2023 and in September 2023. She said that non-residents including children from a local school were accessing the block, smoking cannabis, and causing a nuisance to residents.
The landlord contacted the school mentioned by the resident several times and tried to work with them to raise awareness of the impact of what was happening among the students there. This was appropriate and shows it was trying to prevent the issues from continuing.
The landlord also raised the issues with the police who agreed to allocate additional neighbourhood policing resources to the area to try to stop the ASB. Its work with the police and the local school shows that the landlord made reasonable attempts to work with other local agencies to resolve the resident’s concerns. This was positive and in line with its policy.
The landlord’s ASB policy says it will complete a risk assessment when it received an ASB report to identify the level of harm the ASB is causing. There is no evidence that it completed a risk assessment when the resident reported her concerns. This is a failing. There is also no evidence that the landlord created an action plan to show how it was going to attempt to deal with the ASB or what it expected the resident to do. This is also a failing.
The landlord failed to keep the resident informed about the actions it was taking to resolve her concerns. While it may have been difficult for the landlord to identify the individuals causing the nuisance, it should have kept the resident updated and explained to her the steps it was taking to stop the ASB. The resident explained to the landlord that she did not feel safe in her home and the lack of communication from the landlord is likely to have made her feel as though it did not take her concerns seriously. This is a failing.
The resident was experiencing significant distress because of the ASB, and the lack of a clear action plan and consistent updates from the landlord added to this. She also had to continually chase the landlord for updates which will have caused her time and trouble. The landlord’s compensation policy says that it will award compensation in line with the Ombudsman’s remedies guidance.
Our remedies guidance says that when there has been a failure that has adversely impacted the resident, and the landlord has not identified its failings, a payment of £200 is appropriate and so we have ordered the landlord to pay this.

Complaint	The resident’s reports of repairs to the main doors.
Finding	Maladministration

The landlord’s repairs policy says that there are 3 categories of repair, with differing timescales for the repair to be completed. It does not state which of these categories the repairs to the door would fit into. It makes clear that repairs to external doors are the responsibility of the landlord.
The resident first reported concerns about the main doors being insecure on 15 March 2023 and 7 March 2024. The landlord had previously been made aware of the issues with the external doors in December 2022. On each of these occasions the landlord attended the property and inspected the door to ensure it was locking properly and could not be opened by non-residents.
The landlord carried out the inspections within 5 working days of each report. This is outside the timescale given for an emergency repair, but within the timescale for an appointable repair. It responded within a reasonable timescale, as it is not standard practice in the sector to treat an insecure communal door and as emergency repair.
The landlord’s contractor made it aware in December 2022 that the lock on the external door could not be repaired and the door needed to be replaced. It is not clear if the landlord had done so before the resident’s reports in 2023 and 2024. This points to a record keeping failure. It inspected the doors 10 January 2023, 3 April 2023 and 14 March 2024. It is not clear what, if any, work it completed during or following these occasions, and whether it repaired the issue. This points to a further record keeping failure.
The landlord installed a new magnetic lock in September 2024. It told the resident during the complaints process that the delays were a result of the inability of its contractor to source the parts required. While these delays may have been outside the landlord’s control, it should have provided further updates to the resident about the steps it was taking and when it expected the repair to be completed.
These failures will have caused additional distress and inconvenience for the resident. She became increasingly frustrated with the inaction of the landlord and felt that her concerns were not being taken seriously. Our remedies guidance says that when there has been a failure that has not had a permanent impact on the resident, and the landlord has not identified its failings, a payment of £200 is appropriate.

Complaint	The handling of the complaint
Finding	Maladministration

The landlord’s complaints policy says that it will acknowledge complaints within 5 working days at both stages. It says it will provide a response within 10 working days at stage 1 and within 20 working days at stage 2.
The resident raised a complaint with the landlord on 4 February 2023, which she called a formal complaint. This was about issues with the main door as well as litter in the outside communal areas. The landlord failed to respond to this in line with the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code (the Code) or at all. This was despite it having acknowledged the complaint. This is a significant failing and was a missed opportunity for it to resolve her concerns.
The resident raised her second complaint on 5 January 2024. The landlord provided its stage 1 response on 18 January 2024, which is in line with the timescales given in its policy. It did not provide an acknowledgement at stage 1 and this is a failing.
The resident asked to escalate her complaint to stage 2 on 18 January 2024 and the landlord acknowledged this the next day. It provided its stage 2 response in line with its policy.
The landlord’s complaint responses were brief and did not provide sufficient detail to answer the resident’s concerns. This is not in line with the landlord’s complaints policy or the spirit of the Code. This is likely to have added to the resident’s concerns that her complaint was not being taken seriously.
The failure to fully explain what it was doing did not change the outcome for the resident, as the landlord continued working to resolve the issues she was experiencing. This is in addition to not providing a response to the resident’s original complaint. Our remedies guidance says that when there have been failings that did not significantly affect the outcome for the resident a payment of £150 is appropriate.

Learning

The landlord should ensure its complaint responses provide sufficient detail to answer the concerns raised as part of the complaints process and are in line with the Code. It should also ensure that all complaint responses provide the resident with information about how to escalate their concerns if they remain dissatisfied.

Knowledge information management (record keeping)

The repair records provided by the landlord were incomplete and did not clearly show when repairs were reported. It should ensure it keeps complete records of repair requests and the actions taken to resolve them.
The landlord should also ensure that it properly documents the steps it has taken to resolve reports of ASB, including when the perpetrators are not resident or cannot be easily identified. It should provide evidence of these to the Ombudsman when requested.

Communication

The landlord did not keep the resident updated about what it was doing to resolve her concerns. It should take steps to ensure that residents are properly updated about issues they have reported regardless of whether these have been resolved.