Context and SEN Funding - IOM Primary Schools 23/24 and 24/25

Summary

The requester sought detailed Context and SEN funding data for all Isle of Man primary schools for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 financial years. The Department of Education, Sport and Culture released the information but redacted specific data points to protect the privacy of individual pupils.

Key Facts

• The request covers funding derivation and amounts for all Island primary schools for FY 2023-24 and FY 2024-25.
• Information was partially exempt due to the presence of personal data regarding children.
• Redaction was applied where data related to five or fewer pupils to prevent identification.
• The Department determined that the public interest in privacy outweighed the interest in full transparency for the redacted sections.
• The response references a previous FOI request (4316745) submitted in December 2024.

Data Disclosed

• 2023-24
• 2024-25
• 22 April 2025
• 14 May 2025
• 12 December 2024
• 4605466
• 4316745
• five or less pupils
• section 8
• section 39

Exemptions Cited

• Section 8 of the Data Protection Act 2002 (Personal Data)
• Section 39 of the Freedom of Information Act 2015 (Qualified Exemption)

Original Request

Further to the Department's response to FOI 4316745 submitted 12th December 2024 specifically Appendix Two I seek the same information (relating to the 2023-24 financial year) for all remaining primary schools as was provided in that Appendix for the 7 specific schools in that FOI request (Context, Context Score, Context Funding, SEN, SEN Funding, Top Ups, Top Up Funding and Total Funding); and In relation to Financial Year 2024-25 I seek such information held which details the derivation and amounts of Context and SEN Funding for each Island primary school. This may be in the form as supplied for FOI 4316745 (Narrative in Appendix 1 and spreadsheet data in Appendix 2) or otherwise if the apposite derivation and calculation processes, formulae etc for Financial Year 2024-25 were different from the preceding year.

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Policy, Strategy and Governance Division Department of Education, Sport and Culture Thie Slieau Whallian Foxdale Road St Johns IM4 3AS

Telephone: (01624) 685808 Website: www.gov.im/dec Email: dec@foi.gov.im

Our ref: 4605466 14th May 2025

Dear ###,

We write further to your request, received 22 April 2025, which states:

"Further to the Department's response to FOI 4316745 submitted 12th December 2024 specifically Appendix Two I seek the same information (relating to the 2023-24 financial year) for all remaining primary schools as was provided in that Appendix for the 7 specific schools in that FOI request (Context, Context Score, Context Funding, SEN, SEN Funding, Top Ups, Top Up Funding and Total Funding); and

In relation to Financial Year 2024-25 I seek such information held which details the derivation and amounts of Context and SEN Funding for each Island primary school. This may be in the form as supplied for FOI 4316745 (Narrative in Appendix 1 and spreadsheet data in Appendix 2) or otherwise if the apposite derivation and calculation processes, formulae etc for Financial Year 2024-25 were different from the preceding year."

Our response to your request is as follows: Please find enclosed copies of the information held in respect of the academic years 2023-24 and 2024-25.

Redacted Content

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance some of the information included within the enclosed documents is exempt as it constitutes personal data of a person other than you and under section 8 of the Data Protection Act 2002 the data subject would be entitled to prevent disclosure of the information to a member of the public otherwise than under that Act.

As section 39 is a qualified exemption, it is subject to a public interest test. The public interest must be something that is of serious concern and benefit to the public at large. The matters which were considered in applying the public interest test are as follows:

Factors in favour of disclosure • To promote transparency and openness on Government spending.
• To promote accountability.

Factors in favour of withholding • In the instances where information relates to sensitive data regarding children and where data relates to five or less pupils as the Department determines that individual pupil’s may be identifiable.
• That pupils and their parents/carers have an expectation that their child’s personal information will remain confidential. Disclosure of this information would contravene that expectation and cause an intrusion into the privacy of the data subject which may lead to some distress.
• Whilst the Freedom of Information Act 2015 promotes transparency and accountability and therefore there may be some public interest in the information, it is not sufficient to outweigh an individual’s right for this information to remain private.

In taking these factors into account the Department of Education, Sport and Culture
determine that the factors in favour of maintaining the exemption outweigh the factors in favour of disclosing the information.

Please quote the reference number 4605466 in any future communications.

Your right to request a review

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 complaint form and submitting it electronically or by delivery/post.

An electronic version of our complaint form can be found by going to our website at https://services.gov.im/freedom-of-information/Review . If you would like a paper version of our complaint form to be sent to you by post, please contact me and I will be happy to arrange for this. Your review 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 concluded. 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 2015; 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 right to a review can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website at www.inforights.im.

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.
I will now close your request as of this date.