Copies of law documents Harrison & Harrison V Stevenson

Authority	Department of Education, Sport and Culture
Date received	2017-06-25
Outcome	No information sent - all held but exempt
Outcome date	2017-07-21
Case ID	354857

Summary

A request for copies of two specific legal documents regarding home education was refused by the Department of Education, Sport and Culture. The authority cited exemptions stating the information is already accessible to the public via other means and is held for policy development purposes.

Key Facts

The request was made on 2017-06-25 and responded to on 2017-07-21.
The requested documents were 'Harrison & Harrison v Stevenson' (1981) and 'R v Secretary of State for Education, ex parte Talmud Torah Machzikei Hadass School Trust' (1985).
The Department of Education, Sport and Culture refused to release the documents.
The authority stated the documents are accessible via internet searches or by paying fees to other jurisdictions.
The documents are held by the department for the purpose of developing home education policy.

Data Disclosed

2017-06-25
2017-07-21
1981
1985
IM92818I
Section 20 (2) (b)
Section 34
Freedom of Information Act 2015

Exemptions Cited

Section 20 (2) (b) of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (information accessible to applicant by other means)
Section 34 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (formulation or development of Government policy)

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

21 July 2017

Re: Freedom of Information Request – Reference Number IM92818I

Your Request

Please can you provide copies of the following law documents as held by the Department for Education and Children:

Harrison & Harrison v Stevenson. Appeal 1981 Worcester Crown Court (unreported)

and

R v Secretary of State for Education, ex parte Talmud Torah Machzikei Hadass School Trust, Judicial Review 1985.

Department Response

Whilst our aim is to provide information whenever possible, the Freedom of Information Act 2015 makes provision for public authorities to refuse to release information on grounds where the information is absolutely exempt information or where a qualified exemption may apply.

In this instance the documents you have requested are already accessible to members of the public by other means as they are accessible via internet searches or through the payment of a fee for copies of England and Wales court judgments (to a relevant authority or legal/research service provider in a different jurisdiction).

Your request to be furnished with the above information is therefore refused as:-

i. an absolute exemption applies under Section 20 (2) (b) of the Act (information accessible to applicant by other means - available on the internet or from any other reasonably accessible source)

ii. a qualified exemption applies under Section 34 of the Act (formulation or development of Government policy) as the court judgments are held for the purposes of developing the Department’s home education policy.

It is our understanding that the Harrison & Harrison v Stevenson case was unreported but content and extracts from the case is readily available online using the relevant case names which will provide a number of search engine results from home education/related websites. Department of Education and Children

Rheynn Ynsee as Paitchyn

By way of advice and assistance, you may find the following URLs useful:-

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmeduc/559/559we11.htm

http://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/media/2815/guide_for_parents_-_sept_151- 31729.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/328186/ Review_of_Elective_Home_Education_in_England.pdf

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;

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.

Further information about Freedom of Information requests can be found at www.gov.im/foi