Have any members or individuals of Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform visited primary or secondary schools

Authority	Department of Education, Sport and Culture
Date received	2017-06-16
Outcome	All information sent
Outcome date	2017-07-03
Case ID	354831

Summary

The request asked if members of Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform (HEAR) had visited or requested to visit Department of Education schools in the last six months. The authority confirmed no visits occurred within that timeframe but disclosed an incident where HEAR members presented to staff at St Mary's School in March 2017, which was declined for pupil access.

Key Facts

No members of HEAR visited any Department of Education school within the six months prior to the request.
HEAR members arrived at St Mary's School on Friday 24th March 2017 after the school day concluded.
School leadership at St Mary's listened to a presentation but decided not to invite HEAR to speak to pupils.
Because no visits occurred within the specified six-month period, questions regarding visit purposes and police checks were deemed not applicable.
The response was issued by the Department of Education, Sport and Culture on 3 July 2017.

Data Disclosed

2017-06-16
2017-07-03
3 July 2017
IM91870I
last 6 months
Friday 24th March 2017
St Mary's School

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

3 July 2017

Re: Freedom of Information Request – Reference Number IM91870I

Your Request

Please confirm:

i) if any member of, or individuals affiliated to, or representative of, Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform (HEAR) IOM (or other branch thereof) has visited any Department of Education School (Primary or Secondary or other) within the last 6 months. Please detail which schools were visited and when.

ii) if any member of, or individuals affiliated to, or representative of, Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform (HEAR) IOM (or other branch thereof) has requested to visit any Department of Education School (Primary or Secondary or other) within the last 6 months. Please detail which schools (primary/secondary or other) HEAR requested to visit.

iii) Please detail the purpose of any visit under i) above.

iv) Please detail the purpose of any request to make any visit re ii) above.

v) Please confirm if Police Checks (CRB/DBS or similar) were made on any individuals or groups of individuals affiliated to, or representative of Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform (HEAR) IOM (or other branch thereof) who visited any Department of Education School (Primary or Secondary or other) within the last 6 months

Department Response

I can confirm that no member of, or individuals affiliated to, or representative of, Humanity and Equality in Abortion Reform (HEAR) IOM (or other branch thereof) have visited any Department of Education School (Primary or Secondary or other) within the last 6 months. Therefore, the remaining questions in your request are not applicable.

However I can advise that some members of HEAR arrived at St Mary’s School late on Friday 24th March 2017, and after conclusion of the school day. The Headteacher, Deputy Headteacher, PSHE Co-ordinator, listened to and watched a presentation given by these members and explained that it was not something St Mary’s School considered that it wanted at the time and would not be inviting them into school to talk to pupils.

Department of Education and Children

Rheynn Ynsee as Paitchyn

If you are unhappy with this response to your Freedom of Information request, you may ask us to carry out an internal review of the response, by completing a Review/Complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post to:
Mr Andrew Shipley, Legal and Administration Manager, Hamilton House, Peel Road, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 5EZ.

An electronic version of our Review/Complaint form can be found by going to https://www.gov.im/about-the-government/freedom-of-information/

Your Review/Complaint request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this response, and should be made as soon as practicable. We will respond as soon as the review has been conducted.

Appeal Process

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner for a decision on;

1
Whether we have responded to your request for information in accordance with Part 2 of the Freedom of Information Act; or 2
Whether we are justified in refusing to give you the information requested.

In response to an application for review, the Information Commissioner may, at any time, attempt to resolve a matter by negotiation, conciliation, mediation or another form of alternative dispute resolution and will have regard to any outcome of this in making any subsequent decision.

More detailed information on your rights to review is on the Information Commissioner’s website at https://www.inforights.im/contact-us/

Should you have any queries concerning this letter, please do not hesitate to contact me.