Department of Education, Sport and Culture
8 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 2937.5%
The Freedom of Information requests to the Department of Education, Sport and Culture reveal an authority deeply entangled in the controversy of the St Thomas' Primary School co-location proposal. A significant portion of the casework (over 14 related cases) focuses on this issue, where the Department frequently employed a 'practical refusal' or 'already public' defense to withhold decision-making correspondence (e.g., 354839, 354847), while simultaneously disclosing granular data on pupil catchments (354959) and the fact that the school paid no rent (467435). This pattern suggests a strategy of transparency on operational metrics but obstruction on political and strategic deliberations. The data also exposes a complex relationship between the state and religious groups; while the Department confirmed regular visits by the Child Evangelism Fellowship (354861), it actively blocked access for the abortion reform group HEAR (354831), highlighting a selective gatekeeping of external influences in schools.
Key Cases
Case 354861 — Reveals the systematic presence of the Child Evangelism Fellowship in Isle of Man schools, providing a detailed breakdown of visit frequencies, which raises questions about the separation of church and state in public education.
Case 354831 — Discloses a specific incident where the abortion reform group HEAR attempted to access pupils at St Mary's School and was declined, offering a rare glimpse into the Department's vetting of controversial external groups.
Case 361143 — Highlights a significant administrative error and subsequent correction regarding public objections to the St Thomas' co-location (initially 403 signatures, corrected to 413), demonstrating the volatility of the consultation process.
Case 467435 — Confirms that St Thomas' School paid zero rent to the Department for the building, parking, and playgrounds over three years, a crucial financial fact in the debate over the school's viability and the co-location proposal.
Case 354883 — Discloses that eight unqualified teachers were employed in training roles across four secondary schools, raising concerns about the quality of education and staffing standards during the 2016/17 academic year.
Related FOI Stories
The St Thomas' Co-location Saga — #354839, #354847, #354849, #358135, #354867
Home Education and Legal Enforcement — #354833, #354857, #354875, #358137, #354911
School Performance Data and Statistical Gaps — #354791, #354801, #354809, #354815, #354925
Religious Influence and External Visits — #354851, #354831, #354861, #354877, #512133
Staffing, Employment, and Discipline — #354805, #354813, #354883, #354945, #354947
| Date | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-04-15 | Cinema booker | Upheld - full |
| A request for fees paid to the Broadway Cinema film booker from 2020 to 2024 was initially refused under commercial interest exemptions but was fully upheld following an internal review, resulting in the disclosure of gross and net payment amounts. | ||
| 2023-07-07 | Ballakermeen - Year 9 Options MI | Upheld - full |
| 2023-04-04 | 'Malicious' comments referred to police | Upheld - full |
| 2022-04-25 | UCM (University College Isle of Man) staff & students | Upheld - full |
| A Freedom of Information request was made to the Department of Education, Sport and Culture regarding University College Isle of Man staff employment types, zero-hour contract costs, and student enrollment figures. The authority upheld the request in full, disclosing student enrollment statistics for five academic years and staffing breakdowns by department for December 2019, May 2020, and May 2021. | ||
| 2021-12-30 | Correspondence about regional pools regarding budgets | Upheld - full |
| The request sought correspondence regarding budget requirements for Isle of Man regional swimming pools, specifically focusing on utility costs and staffing. The response disclosed a letter from the Western Swimming Pool detailing significant financial pressures from rising gas and electricity tariffs, wage disparities with the National Sports Centre, and urgent maintenance funding needs. | ||
| 2021-07-26 | New secondary school in Castletown | Upheld - full |
| A request was made for reports, correspondence, design cases, and financial details regarding the proposed new Castle Rushen High School in Castletown. The Department of Education, Sport and Culture disclosed the strategic brief but withheld cost estimates and option appraisals under a commercial interests exemption to protect the upcoming tendering process. | ||
| 2021-03-15 | 2020 data relating to 5 Level 2 Qualifications (A*-C inc E&M) | Upheld - full |
| The request sought 2020 performance data, correspondence, and quality assurance details regarding Level 2 qualifications from the Department of Education, Sport and Culture. The authority upheld the request in full, disclosing examination results, destination statistics, and school improvement targets. | ||
| 2019-02-15 | Achievement at KS4 in English and Maths | Upheld - full |