Department of Education, Sport and Culture
617 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 38.1%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2017-05-08 | Articles of Government (Article 6) Secondary Schools School Improvement Plans | All information sent |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture disclosed the 2016-2017 School Improvement Plan for a secondary school, detailing three key focus areas: parent partnerships, creative learning approaches, and distributed leadership. | ||
| 2017-04-19 | Percentage of Pupils completing Year 11 obtaining GCSE/IGCSE passes at Grade A*to C in all other subjects | All information sent |
| 2017-04-03 | Copy of spec and contract with financial info redacted out as it relates to Ballacottier School | Information not held |
| A request was made for the name of the contractor responsible for cleaning Ballacottier School and other schools, but the Department of Education refused the request stating they do not hold the information. | ||
| 2017-04-03 | Name of contractor responsible for cleanng of Ballacottier and any other schools with same contractor | Information not held |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture refused a request for cleaning contract specifications for Ballacottier School, stating they do not hold the information and that the request lacked substance. The authority advised the applicant to direct the inquiry to the Department of Infrastructure, which manages estates and cleaning services. | ||
| 2017-03-22 | Further English Baccalaureate data (performance measures) | Some information sent but not all held |
| The request sought English Baccalaureate attainment data and Year 11 completion numbers for Isle of Man secondary schools in 2015-16. The Department of Education refused the EBacc data as it was not held and would require substantial compilation, but provided the requested Year 11 completion figures. | ||
| 2017-03-17 | Teaching staff - incl posts not filled w/c 20/2/17 rate of pay ph bank teacher total cost of bank teachers | All information sent |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture provided a list of unfilled teaching posts as of February 2017 and hourly pay rates for supply teachers, while offering an estimated weekly cost for supply teachers based on January 2017 data instead of the requested week. | ||
| 2017-03-12 | How many Out of Catchment Requests made, approved and declined | All information sent |
| 2017-03-07 | Percentage of pupils completing Year 11 grades/Ebaccalaureate | All information sent |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture provided full data on Year 11 Ebacc subject attainment (entries and A*-C percentages) for five Isle of Man schools between 2012 and 2016. The response includes detailed statistics for subjects including English, Mathematics, Sciences, Languages, and Computer Science. | ||
| 2017-03-04 | Y4 schemes of work & curricula - Anagh Coar & Ashley Hill | Some information sent but not all held |
| The requester asked for Year 4 schemes of work and curricula for Anagh Coar and Ashley Hill Primary Schools, but the Department of Education refused to provide specific school documents as they are not held centrally or formally created. Instead, the authority provided online links to general Isle of Man curriculum resources and offered direct contact with the schools for further assistance. | ||
| 2017-03-01 | Teaching staff - incl absence, bank staff & zero hours contracts | All information sent |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture provided data on teaching staff numbers, absences, and supply teacher usage and costs for February 2016 and February 2017. The response clarified that no staff are employed on 'zero hours' contracts as supply teachers are not considered employees under employment law. | ||
| 2017-02-23 | Primary school SAT results - last 3 years | Information not held |
| 2017-02-13 | Cost to Department for university fees for island residents and all other loans | All information sent |
| 2017-02-13 | Pupil information - Secondary Schools | Some information sent but part exempt |
| A request for detailed pupil statistics and exam results for Isle of Man secondary schools from 2011 to 2016 was partially fulfilled, with data on roll numbers, absences, and demographics provided, while exam results and club details were refused as publicly available elsewhere. | ||
| 2017-02-02 | Number of primary school children in each school Number of teachers/teaching assistants | All information sent |
| 2017-01-31 | Primary and Secondary school SSRE reports | No information sent - all held but exempt |
| A request for full external validation reports (SSRE) for all Isle of Man primary and secondary schools was refused because the information is already accessible by contacting the schools directly. The authority provided a list of school contact details instead of the requested reports. | ||
| 2017-01-03 | Pupil information - Primary Schools | All information sent |
| The Department of Education, Sport and Culture provided a comprehensive dataset on Isle of Man primary schools covering pupil rolls, demographics, attendance, and teacher-assessed scores for academic years 2012-16. The response confirmed that all requested information was sent, with a note that gender breakdown was included within the roll data and that average point scores would not be available for future years due to software changes. | ||
| 2017-01-03 | Key Stage 2 Attainment levels | All information sent |