Office of the Commissioner
PO Box 61791
London
SW1P 9NT
E [email address]
W www.childmaintenance.org
Date: 27 July 2009
Mr Gareth Davies
[FOI #13775 email]
Ref: VTR 1245
Dear Mr Davies,
Thank you for your Freedom of Information request dated 27 June 2009. Your request has
been considered under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). Please
find below a copy of your request together with a corresponding response.
Request
For each of the financial years covering the period 2005-2009 I would like to know the total
number of each of the following;
1. Complaints against the Child Support Agency leading to a finding of maladministration by
the agency.
2. Complaints against the Child Support Agency leading to a finding that the CSA had
unlawfully gathered information.
3. Complaints against the CSA leading to the CSA changing its records to remove unlawfully
gathered or unlawfully stored information.
4. Complaints against the CSA leading to a finding that the CSA had either misstated the law
or misdirected itself in law.
5. Complaints against the CSA leading to the CSA making a payment of compensation to the
complainant.
Response
The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission took over responsibility for the Child
Support Agency on 1 November 2008.
1 – 4. The information you requested is not available as management information on
complaints does not provide a breakdown of the outcome of the complaint.
5. The Child Support Agency operates a discretionary, non-statutory scheme providing
financial redress for maladministration and recompense where error or delays have had an
adverse effect on clients’ lives. However, it is not necessary for a client to make a complaint
in order for the Agency to award redress. The Agency might identify and pay redress for an
error that the client is unaware of. The information we hold relates to all redress payments,
whether or not they have arisen as a result of a complaint. The Agency does not hold
separate information on the number or amounts of redress awards resulting from complaints.
Information on the total amount paid in financial redress under this scheme is published each
year in our Annual Report and Accounts, copies of which are held online.
The Child Support Agency Annual Report and Accounts is available at:
2004/05 http://www.csa.gov.uk/en/PDF/reports/arep0405.pdf
2005/06 http://www.csa.gov.uk/en/PDF/reports/arep0506.pdf
2006/07 http://www.csa.gov.uk/en/PDF/reports/annual_report_v21.pdf
2007/08 http://www.csa.gov.uk/en/PDF/reports/annual_report_08.pdf
The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission’s Annual Report and Accounts
2008/09 is available on the Commission’s website and can be accessed at:
http://www.childmaintenance.org/pdf/CMEC_Annual_Report_2009.pdf
Copies of these publications are available to purchase from TSO (The Stationery Office)
bookshops or online at:
www.tsoshop.co.uk.
I hope you find the information you have been provided with helpful and I am sorry on this
occasion I have been unable to provide you with the full information you requested. If you
have any queries about this letter please contact me quoting the reference number above.
Yours sincerely
Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission
Freedom of Information Act Focal Point
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Your right to complain under the Freedom of Information Act
If you are not happy with this response you may request an internal review by e-mailing
[email address] or by writing to Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, Freedom of
Information Act Focal Point, PO Box 61791, London, SW1P 9NT. Any review request should be submitted within two
months of the date of this letter.
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner’s
Office for a decision. Generally the Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted our own complaints
procedure. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 5AF
www.ico.gov.uk
Document Outline
