Dear Sir

Thank you for your request for information held by the Council under the
provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 which was received on
[insert date].

We will contact you again once it has been ascertained what data is held by
Birmingham City Council. In some circumstances a fee may be payable and if
that is the case, we will let you know. A fees notice will be issued to
you, and you will be required to pay before we will proceed to deal with
your request.

If you require any further information or are not happy with our response
please do not hesitate to contact me quoting the reference number above in
any future communications.

Yours sincerely
Steve Cullen
Data Protection and Freedom of Information Manager
Children, Young People and Families Directorate
Birmingham City Council

Tel: 0121 464 4591
Email: [email address]

Data Protection Act 1998
The information you have provided within your Freedom of Information
request will be held on our database and may also be held within manual
records for a period of 2 years from the date Birmingham City Council
received your request. Any personal data that you provide to Birmingham
City Council will be held in line with the requirements set out within the
Data Protection Act 1998.

Re Use of Public Sector Information
Where Birmingham City Council is the copyright holder of any information
that may be released, re-use for personal, educational or non-commercial
purposes is permitted without further reference to the City Council. Where
the re-use is for other purposes, such as commercial re-use, the applicant
should notify the City Council in writing to seek approval or agree terms
for re-use.

dangos adrannau a ddyfynnir

Dear Sir

I am writing in respect of your recent enquiry for information held by the
Authority under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding.

Please find herewith the following:

Concerning the age assessment of unaccompanied children seeking asylum and
the available guidance, can you please provide copies of:

1) Confirmation or denial that it is the practice of your local authority
to always send the UKBA/Home Office a full copy of the age assessment and
that doing so complies with your Confidentiality and Data Protection Act
duties and policies and is done so with the informed consent of the person
age assessed or with the written agreement of the assessed person's legal
representative.

A full copy of the age assessment is not routinely sent to the UK Border
Agency.

1.1) If you do send the UKBA/Home Office a full copy of the age assessment,
but only in certain circumstances, can you give details of these
circumstances and that doing so complies with your Confidentiality and Data
Protection Act duties and policies and is done so with the informed consent
of the person age assessed or with the written agreement of the assessed
person's legal representative.

A full copy of the age assessment is only sent to the UK Border Agency when
the applicant has submitted an appeal to an Immigration Appeal Tribunal and
the age assessment is a key factor in the decision which will be taken.
Prior to sending a full age assessment to the UK Border Agency legal
advice was obtained that this was permissable under s35 Date Protection Act
1998. If we are able to contact the applicant at that stage they will be
notified of this.

1.2) Confirmation or denial that it is the practice of your local authority
to always only send the UKBA/Home Office a summary of the outcome of the
age assessment and that doing so complies with your Confidentiality and
Data Protection Act duties and policies and is done so with the informed
consent of the person age assessed or with the written agreement of the
assessed person's legal representative.

The assessed age of the applicant is sent to the UK Border Agency and when
the assessment is commenced they are informed though an interpreter that
this will happen.

In connection with (1), (1.1) and (1.2) above can you please provide copies
of any procedures, operational policy or guidance that explains the manner
by which these age assessments or summaries are shared with the UKBA/Home
Office and that doing so is perfectly legal and professionally ethical.
Together with copies of the relevant age assessment forms or summaries you
currently use.

We do not have written procedures in this matter. The provision of
informaiton to the UK BA is guided by legal advice.

I attach the current age assessment form used in this authority. The
final page is sent to the UK BA.

(See attached file: Age Assessment_Electronic.dot)

Whilst we have undertaken a thorough search of the information held by
Birmingham City Council, it may be that, due to the size and amount of
information held by Birmingham City Council, some information may have been
inadvertently missed.

If you have any information which may assist us in determining or locating
any missed information, we would be grateful if you would contact us with
details of this information, so that we can conduct a further search.

If you are not satisfied with the response you may ask for an internal
review. If subsequently you are not satisfied with the Council’s decision
you may apply to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally,
the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints
procedure provided by the Council. The Information Commissioner can be
contacted at the following address:

The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 01625 545745 Web Address: www.ico.gov.uk

Yours faithfully,
Steve Cullen
Data Protection and Freedom of Information Manager
Children, Young People and Families Directorate
Birmingham City Council

Tel: 0121 464 4591
Email: [email address]

Re-use of Public Sector Information
The information provided is subject to Birmingham City Council copyright,
however, it may be re-used for personal, educational or non-commercial
purposes without further reference to the City Council. If the re-use is
for other purposes, such as commercial re-use, you should notify the City
Council in writing to seek approval or agree terms for re-use. Where
Birmingham City Council does not hold the copyright, it has indicated the
copyright holder. Permission for re-use should be sought from them
directly.

dangos adrannau a ddyfynnir

You recently submitted an FOI request. I would be grateful if you would
identify yourself and indicate the purpose of your request.

Regards

Les Lawrence