DPA question - does the LGA exemption apply to it?

[convenientlyignoringfacts]

I have made a Subject Access Request under the DPA to the LGO.

In reply, I got this answer:

The Freedom of Information Act does not override any restriction on the release of information covered by an earlier law.

Such a restrition applies to the Ombudsman'e complaint files. Uner the Local Government Act 1974 (Section 32(2)) the Ombudsman is not permitted to disclose any information obtained in the course of, or for the purposes of, the investigation of a complaint, unless s/he considers it necessary for the purposes of the investigation.

Can anyone explain this? I have received some selected documents and am considering the ICO.

It means your request was cnosidered as an FoI request rather than a subject access request. Whether or not this was correct depends on the information which you were requesting. If you were asking for the information they hold on you it should have been dealt with under the DPA. However, if you were asking for information about a particular complaint, for example, that is probably an FoI request.

prh47bridge - thanks for that reply.

I was asking for all information about my ds - everything they have on him but yes, they are dealing with my complaint.

I have said that I wanted all information under the DPA, all emails etc. relating to my ds with regards to the complaint that I made. So would letters/emails from school to the local authority etc. regarding his education be under the DPA?

Yes but the LGO may not have those. I would try a subject access request to the LA.

Thanks prh47bridge.

The LGO's chronology of events itemized those emails but they were not included in the documents I received. Makes me wonder what else they are not giving me.

I will do a SAR to the LA. Should I do a time limited one from eg. Jan 11 to present as I have done one in January this year?

Really appreciate your help. Hope you are not regretting responding to this thread.

The LGO may know about those emails but still not have the contents.

I've not come across someone doing a time limited request before but I don't see any reason why not. Of course, they may find it easier to simply send you everything they've got rather than go through and weed out the older stuff.

No, not regretting it at all!

Thank you prh.

Here's hoping you see this prh.

If the LGO knew but do not have the contents, should they be basing their report on it?

I cannot find lots of papers eg. lgo said according to papers prepared for tribunal, etc, I cannot find those papers - aren't they necessary for the purpose of the investigation if they are using it as evidence? SALT went in and had input to the programme - no papers etc. Should I have them?

If I ask the LEA for their papers, do you think I will get papers on the view of the legal team?

TIA.

Sorry - I can see that there is something I failed to make clear in my first post. The LGO is exempt from the DPA. So even if they dealt with your request under the DPA you still would not have received the papers. I therefore don't think we can draw any conclusion as to whether or not they have the contents of the letters/emails.

Turning to the LA, most information related to health, education and social work is exempt from the subject access requirements of the DPA. The only way to find out whether the LA think the exemption covers the information you want is to make a subject access request. If they refuse you can appeal to the Information Commissioner.

A little confused now.

The ICO said if I did not agree with the way the LGO has handled matters and if I think there are some papers I should have received, then I should make a complaint against the LGO, after going through the internal process of course. This is especially since I made a SAR under the DPA and they are treating it as a FOI request.

Does this mean that the LGO can just decide which papers they want to give me regardless of whether they are necessary for the purpose of the investigation?

The LGO is investigating, not you. It is up to the LGO to decide what papers they think they need so that they can investigate your complaint. It is not up to them to share these papers with you so that you can investigate yourself. The fact that a paper may be necessary for the purpose of the investigation does not mean it should be shared with you.

You would typically not expect to receive papers from the LGO in the course of an investigation. You would generally only receive their decision.

The ICO handles complaints about both the DPA and FoI. If you believe the LGO has incorrectly refused to give you information you have requested you are entitled to complain to the ICO. However, the LGO is likely to claim that files related to their investigations are exempt from both the DPA and FoI.

Ahh, clearer now.Thank you prh.

Will go off to look at papers now.