Southern Health and Social Care Trust

The complainant has requested information relating to a specific care home. Southern Health and Social Care Trust (the Trust) responded that part of the request was not a request for recorded information. It relied on section 40(2) of the FOIA to withhold the information in relation to the rest of the request. The complainant disputed the Trusts refusal to provide the information to part 1 of their request. The Commissioner’s decision is that the Trust was correct to rely on section 40(2) of the FOIA to refuse to provide the information to part 1 of the request in relation to the residents (service users). However he finds that section 40(2) of the FOIA is not engaged to the information to part 1 of the request in relation to the staff members. The Commissioner requires the Trust to take the following steps to ensure compliance with the legislation. Provide the complainant with the information requested to part 1 of the request in relation to the staff members. The Trust must take these steps within 35 calendar days of the date of this decision notice. Failure to comply may result in the Commissioner making written certification of this fact to the High Court pursuant to section 54 of FOIA and may be dealt with as a contempt of court.