Information regarding guidance & toolkits for assessors

The request was successful.

Dear Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority,

Please can you supply the following information relating to any guidance material/information held by the CICA that assessors receive on deciding and determining cases.
Please note that I am not requesting information about any personal medical information as obviously medical information may be used to decide on an award. I would like to know about any guidance information that assessors have been provided with by the CICA e.g. staff training guides/manuals that explain the procedure on how cases should be considered.

Where possible, please include information relating to all 4 instances below, this list is not exhaustive and if there is any other information relating to the guidance that assessors use please include these too.

1. the initial assessment of a claim
2. reviewing a claim (at any stage)
3. reviewing a claim after successful appeal on eligibility at the first tier tribunal
4. finalising a claim

a. Explain the procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use when calculating Loss of earnings

b. Explain the procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use when making a decision on whether to consider an applicants loss of earnings within their claim i.e. please explain how assessors judge whether an application should be considered for loss of earnings

c. Explain the step by step procedure and/or provide copies of guidance material/information that assessors use when assessing involving adult sexual abuse cases

d. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use for cases involving domestic violence cases

e. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use for cases involving rape cases

f. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use for cases involving mental injury as a result of sexual abuse

g. Explain or provide all guidance material/information assessors use to decide whether a case involving mental injury is deemed either moderate or severe

h. Explain the step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance material/information that assessors use for cases involving sexual abuse cases

i. Explain the procedure and/or provide all guidance material that assessors use when determining whether an Independent Health Professional is needed to assess sexual assault cases involving mental injury

Thank you and I look forward to your response.

Yours faithfully,

Cielle Simpson

FOI, Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority

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FOI, Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority

Dear Ms Simpson

Ref: FOI_44_2018

Thank you for your email requesting information from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.

Your request is being dealt with under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and will be answered within twenty working days.

If you have any queries about this request do not hesitate to contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

Freedom of Information requests
CICA

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FOI, Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority

1 Attachment

Dear Cielle Simpson

 

Freedom of Information Act Request – Reference Number: FOI_44_2018

 

Thank you for your request which we are responding to under the Freedom of
Information Act (2000).

 

Your request

Please can you supply the following information relating to any guidance
material/information held by the CICA that assessors receive on deciding
and determining cases.

Please note that I am not requesting information about any personal
medical information as obviously medical information may be used to decide
on an award. I would like to know about any guidance information that
assessors have been provided with by the CICA e.g. staff training
guides/manuals that explain the procedure on how cases should be
considered.

 

Where possible, please include information relating to all 4 instances
below, this list is not exhaustive and if there is any other information
relating to the guidance that assessors use please include these too.

 

1. the initial assessment of a claim

2. reviewing a claim (at any stage)

3. reviewing a claim after successful appeal on eligibility at the first
tier tribunal 4. finalising a claim

 

a. Explain the procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance
material/information that assessors use when calculating Loss of earnings

 

b. Explain the procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance
material/information that assessors use when making a decision on whether
to consider an applicant’s loss of earnings within their claim i.e. please
explain how assessors judge whether an application should be considered
for loss of earnings

 

c. Explain the step by step procedure and/or provide copies of guidance
material/information that assessors use when assessing involving adult
sexual abuse cases

 

d. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance
material/information that assessors use for cases involving domestic
violence cases

 

e. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance
material/information that assessors use for cases involving rape cases

 

f. Explain step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all guidance
material/information that assessors use for cases involving mental injury
as a result of sexual abuse

 

g. Explain or provide all guidance material/information assessors use to
decide whether a case involving mental injury is deemed either moderate or
severe

 

h. Explain the step by step procedure and/or provide copies of all
guidance material/information that assessors use for cases involving
sexual abuse cases

 

i. Explain the procedure and/or provide all guidance material that
assessors use when determining whether an Independent Health Professional
is needed to assess sexual assault cases involving mental injury

 

 

Response

A copy of the internal guidance in place at the date of this response is
attached. Under Section 1 (4), we have made some recent changes to our
guidance (pages 213-269) following feedback given to the Independent
Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.  These amendments were made to reflect
diversity and gender balance in the examples.

 

CICA decision making is determined in line with the relevant Scheme.
Internal guidance available to decision makers is used as an aid to help
support consistency in their decision making, and may be subject to review
or change.

 

Right to request a review
If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request, you have the
right to ask for an internal review. Internal review requests should be
submitted within two months of the date of receipt of the response to your
original letter and should be addressed to: Criminal Injuries Compensation
Authority, Legal Services, Alexander Bain House, Atlantic Quay, 15 York
Street, Glasgow G2 8JQ.

 

Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future
communications.

 

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information
Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9
5AF.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Freedom of Information Requests

CICA

 

 

 

 

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