The Unaccompanied care leavers and asylum seekers report

Enquiries to: Wendy
Twigge Your Ref:

Our Ref:
FOI/WT/CW/63653

Ms. Potter

Email: [1][FOI #13116 email]
Date: 09 June 2009

Dear Ms Potter,

Acknowledgement in respect of request for information.

Thank you for your recent correspondence requesting information from the
City Council. Your request was received in our offices on 09 June 2009
and, is being processed in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act
2000.

The information you have requested can be summarised as follows:

1. To help understand how this practice operates can you please advise

me, in the final quarter of 2008 (October, November and December

2008) how many newly arrived 16 and 17 year old UASC you

accommodated under Section 20 for the first time and for each

individual UASC please advise of.

A) The exact age of each individual UASC was when first

accommodated - Using the formula that indicates how many full years

and months has elapsed since birth. Such as 16.4, meaning 16 years

and 4 months.

B) The exact date each individual first became accommodated under

Section 20.

C) An indication, of a Yes or No, on whether you have provided any

individual UASC with Section 17 support, prior to them being

accommodated under Section 20 on the date given in section B.

D) If, at present, any individual has been discharged from Section

20, please advise of the exact date this discharge took effect.

E) Whether any services are currently provided, to each individual,

under the Children (Leaving Care) Act.

F) Whether any services are currently provided, to each individual,

under Section 17 of the Children Act .

G) The exact date any individual UASC was assessed as being 18 or

more years of age.

In your response please also state with a simple Yes or No, on

whether or not you follow the practice of not accommodating a UASC

under Section 20 until you have assessed them as being under the

age of 18?

If the above summary is incorrect or you wish to change any details, let
me know at the earliest opportunity.

A response will be sent to you as soon as possible and in any case within
the statutory deadline which is 20 working days from the working day after
your request was received.

For your information, the Act defines a number of exemptions which may
prevent the release of information you have requested. There will be an
assessment and, if any of the exemption categories apply, the information
will not be provided to you. You will be informed if this is the case.

Please quote the above reference number in all future communications.

Yours sincerely

Miss W Twigge (pp)

Information Manager

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Dear Ms Potter

I refer to your request under the Freedom of Information regarding
unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) and we are currently in the
process of collating the data you have requested. However we require
further clarification of point G as a reminder you have asked:

`The exact date any individual UASC was assessed as being 18 or more years
of age'

When replying can you please forward your response to
[1][email address]

Regards

Andrea Glanville

Legal Services

Liverpool City Council

Municipal Buildings

Dale Street

Liverpool

L2 2DH

Telephone 0151 225 2709

Fax: 0151 225 2392

email: [2][email address]

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References

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1. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
2. mailto:[email address]

Dear Ms Potter

Please find attached response to your request under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 regarding UASC.

Regards

Andrea Glanville
Legal Services
Liverpool City Council
Municipal Buildings
Dale Street
Liverpool
L2 2DH
Telephone 0151 225 2709
Fax: 0151 225 2392
email: [email address]

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Enquiries to: Edwina
Hunter

Your Ref:

Our Ref: 63653

Teresa Potter
Via email:
[email address]
Date 7 August 2009

Dear Ms Potter,

YOUR INFORMATION REQUEST

I am writing to you about your request for a review of a Freedom of
Information dated 23 July 2009 and your original information request made
on 8 June 2009.

Your review request related to a decision made under the Freedom of
Information Act by the Council on 22 July 2009.

Your request has been assigned to me to investigate and review.

The result of my review is contained in this letter.

I have investigated the Council's responses to you made on 22 July 2009.

On review, the Council's response is as follows:

The Council is not obligated under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
to fill in the Excel spreadsheet as requested. Section 11 of the FOIA
allows you to express a preference as to how you would like to receive
information however it does not extend to compelling the Council to create
or alter information in the way you have requested.

Previous Decision Notices from the Information Commissioner support the
view that this Section allows applicants to express a preference for
receipt of information in email or hard copy form, or to inspect in
person.

The Council's response on review therefore reflects the above position.
Where we hold information which is caught by your request and has not
previously been provided to you, we will provide it in written form in
this letter which will then be emailed to you at the address you
nominated, rather than via the Excel sheet you have requested.

The practices of other Councils regarding your information requests are
not binding upon this Council.

Regarding the requests for information made on 8 June 2009, I can confirm
on review that the Council holds the following information which is caught
by your request:

Regarding the final quarter of 2008, how many newly arrived 16 and 17 year
old UASC the Council accommodated under Section 20 for the first time:

The Council holds information which indicates that seven UASC were
accommodated in the above mentioned period. One newly arrived UASC was
accommodated under Section 20; and six were accommodated under Section 17.

and for each UASC please advise of:

A. The exact age of each UASC when first accommodated

The Council holds information which indicates that the UASC were aged
16.11, 16.9, 17.5, 17.9, 17.9, and 17.11 when first accommodated.

B. The exact date each individual first became accommodated under Section
20

This person arrived in the final quarter of 2008 and was accommodated
under Section 20 on 11 May 2009.

C. An indication, of a Yes/No, on whether you have provided any
individual UASC with Section 17 support, prior to them being
accommodated under Section 20, on the date given in Section B

The Council is not obligated to answer questions under the FOIA. However
as we would like to give advice and assistance, we can indicate that the
person identified in Section B was given Section 17 support prior to them
being accommodated under Section 20.

D. If, at present, any individual has been discharged from Section 20,
please advise of the exact date this discharge took effect

None discharged, therefore no information is held in response to this
request.

E. Whether any services are currently provided to each individual under
the Children (Leaving Care) Act

The Council is not obligated to answer questions under the FOIA. However
as we would like to give advice and assistance, we can indicate that the
Council is providing services to the UASC identified in Question B above
under the Children (Leaving Care) Act.

F. Whether any services are currently provided to each individual under
Section 17 of the Children Act

The Council is not obligated to answer questions under the FOIA. However
as we would like to give advice and assistance, we can indicate that the
Council is providing services to the UASC's identified above under Section
17 of the Children Act.

G. The exact date any individual UASC was assessed as being 18 years or
more years of age

The Council has previously asked you to clarify what information you are
seeking via this question, as we are unclear as to what information you
are seeking. You have declined our request to clarify the request. The
Council remains uncertain about what information you are seeking via this
request and therefore is not willing to assume what information you are
seeking. The Council believes the question could refer to asylum seekers
who arrived in the final quarter of 2008 who were deemed to be over 18 on
assessment, or could refer to the final quarter arrivals who have
subsequently turned 18. However in the absence of clarification, we remain
unable to answer this question on review.

Answering yes/no, whether the Council follows the practice of not
accommodating a UASC under Section 20 until you have assessed them as
being under the age of 18?

The Council provided a response to this request on 22 July 2009. On review
our response remains similar. The FOIA does not compel the Council to
answer questions, but rather to provide access to already recorded
information which the Council holds. The Council does not hold information
which would answer this question in a yes or no fashion.

During my review I also considered whether the Council had complied with
the 20 working day response time as designated in Section 10 of the FOIA.
My finding is that the Council did not comply with this response time. I
apologise for this breach on behalf of the Council.

This now completes my review in this matter.

If you remain dissatisfied you may also apply to the Information
Commissioner for a decision about whether the request for information has
been dealt with in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Their website is [1]www.ico.gov.uk

Their postal address and telephone numbers are:

Information Commissioner's Office,

Wycliffe House,

Water Lane,

Wilmslow,

Cheshire SK9 5AF

Fax number 01625 524 510

Telephone 01625 545745.

Yours sincerely,

Edwina Hunter

Principal Information Officer.

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References

Visible links
1. http://www.ico.gov.uk/