5th November 2013
Cliftonville
Northampton
NN1 5BD
Mrs S. Mood
Direct Dial: 01604 523881
Switchboard:01604 634700
E-Mail: request-176061-
xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
E-mail- xxx@xxx.xxx.xx
Dear Mrs Mood
Request under Freedom of Information Act 2000
Request Ref: NGFOI 13/14: 218
Response Letter
Thank you for your request for information received at Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
(NGH) on 10th September.
I am pleased that we are now able to provide you with a response to your request as shown below.
Response from Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust (NGH):
Please find your questions answered below.
1. I require details of all staff who have had their contract of employment terminated by the
Trust in the last 3 years on the grounds of the following:
Response 1: Please see the figures below in relation all permanent staff who have had their
contract of employment terminated during the last three years.
a) sickness absence
Response: 0 recorded specifically as
sickness absence.
b) capability
Response: 19
c) conduct
Response: 15
d) some other substantial reason
Response: 13
e) breach of statutory duty or enactment
Response: 0
This information must be broken down by:
- Staff group
- Salary Band/Grade
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Disability
- Age group categorised using the following age bands 16 - 20, 21 - 25, 26 - 35, 36 - 45, 46 -
55, 56 – 65 and 65+.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Refusal to supply under Section 40
Disclosure of personal data or information about a third party would not be 'fair', under the Data
Protection Principles in the Data Protection Act. As such, we are unable to disclose a breakdown of
the information into the categories stated as it constitutes personal information as defined under the
Data Protection Act 1998. Consequently, in accordance with section 7 (4) and 7 (6) of the Act the
Trust owes a duty of confidence to the individuals to whom the data relates.
Applying First Principal of Data Protection Act - Due to the small number of staff records
involved in your request and the unique circumstances of each case, to disclose information such
as the ethnicity, gender or staff group etc, could potentially cause unnecessary and unjustified
distress or damage to the persons to whom the information relates. Due to the unique
circumstances of each case and other information which might be available, it may be possible for
an individual to be identified. The Trust reserves the right under the FOI Act to withhold information,
including statistical information, if its disclosure would breach the law of confidentiality in cases
where small numbers may allow the identification of individuals by association.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
2. I require details of all staff who have requested flexible working arrangements or a reduction in
hours over the last 3 years to include the following:
a) the reasons for the request
b) the timescale in which the decision was made from the date of the request (the number of days it
took to consider and make the decision)
c) the resultant outcome of the decision
d) the name of the department/service in which this decision was made
e) the name of the directorate in which this decision was made
This information must be broken down by:
- Staff group
- Salary Band/Grade
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Disability
- Age group categorised using the following age bands 16 - 20, 21 - 25, 26 - 35, 36 - 45, 46 -
55, 56 – 65 and 65+.
Response:
The Trust only started recording flexible working in 2012/13 and not all is recorded centrally. In
order to provide this information it would need every manager in the Trust to search individual
personnel files.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Refusal to supply information under Section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
Under section 12 (1) of the FOIA a public authority does not have to comply with a request for
information if the cost of compliance exceeds the appropriate limit1.
We estimate that the time it would take to locate, retrieve and review files in order to extract the
information at the level of detail requested would be disproportionately expensive, costing more
than the appropriate limit for FOI requests.
In order to provide you with the information that you have requested, each departmental manager
within the Trust would be required to manually search individual personnel files to extract this
information.
Consequently your request is being refused under the provisions at Section 12(1) of the Freedom
of Information Act 2000.
3. I require details of all staff who have requested Maternity, Paternity or Adoption leave over the
last 3 years to include the following:
Response:
Our records show that from 2009 to date the following number of people have taken maternity,
adoption or maternity leave:
a) the reasons for the request
Response:
Maternity = 938
Adoption = 7
Paternity = 29
b) the timescale in which the decision was made from the date of the request (the number of
days it took to consider and make the decision)
Response:
We do not centrally record the date documents are submitted and the date that their leave and pay
entitlements are confirmed by the Trust.
c) the resultant outcome of the decision
Response:
All members of staff who meet the statutory and contractual eligibility criteria are entitled to leave.
The level of pay that they may be entitled to from the Trust is dependent on meeting specific
statutory and contractual eligibility criteria.
1 The appropriate limit in regulations and for the NHS is set at £450. This represents the cost of one person, regardless
of the actual cost or rate of pay, spending 18 hours in determining whether the Trust holds the information and locating,
retrieving and extracting the information.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
d) the name of the department/service in which this decision was made
Response:
Not applicable as all members of staff who meet the statutory and contractual eligibility criteria are
entitled to leave. Decisions are not made within the department in which they work.
e) the name of the directorate in which this decision was made
Response:
Please refer to the attachment entitled ‘Maternity, Paternity, Adoption leave’ which details the
Directorate employees worked in along with the type of leave given.
4. How many staff have voluntarily left either permanently or on a temporary basis the employment
of the HR Directorate over the last 3 years including:
Response 4:
Please see the tables which follow. Please note this information pertains to permanent staff only
and relates to those who are recorded under the term ‘voluntary resignation’.
Leavers Headcount
October 2010 –
September 2011
8
Leavers Headcount
October 2011 –
September 2012
5
Leavers Headcount
October 2012 –
September 2013
9
a) the reason for leaving
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of the reasons for leaving as low numbers
in each category along with other information which may be available could allow the identification
of the individuals by association. This data is therefore exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of
Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
b) the period of notice which was provided
Response:
Please refer to the attachment entitled ‘Question 4’. Please note data has been generalised.
c) the duration of their employment with the Trust
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of each individual’s length of service within
the Trust as this information is held to a detailed level, specific to each employee and could allow
the identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore exempt under section 40 of
the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
d) the duration of their employment with the Directorate and department they left
Response:
Please refer to the attachment entitled ‘Question 4’. Please note data has been generalised.
e) whether they completed an exit interview
Response:
This information is not recorded within our current system.
f) the name of the department in which they worked
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of the departments in which they worked
as low numbers in certain departments along with other information which may be available could
allow the identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore exempt under section
40 of the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
This information must be broken down by:
- Staff group
- Salary Band/Grade
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Disability
- Age group categorised using the following age bands 16 - 20, 21 - 25, 26 - 35, 36 - 45, 46 -
55, 56 – 65 and 65+.
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of the information into the categories listed
as this information constitutes personal data and could allow identification of the individuals to
whom the data relates by association. This data is therefore exempt under section 40 of the
Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
5. What is the Annual Turnover of the HR Directorate over the last 3 years as a value and a
percentage at yearly intervals to include the following:
Response:
It should be noted that this information pertains to all permanent staff that have left the employment
of the HR Directorate for any reason.
- The number of leavers by reason
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of the reasons for leaving the HR
Directorate, as low numbers in each category along with other information which may be available
could allow the identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore exempt under
section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
- The percentage of leavers against Total Headcount (Staff in Post) by reason
Response:
Please refer to the table which follows.
- The number of leavers against Budgeted Establishment by Department
Response:
Please refer to the table which follows.
- The percentage of leavers against Budgeted Establishment by Department
Response:
Please refer to the table which follows.
- The number of posts which have been given up to cost improvement, redundancy or not
otherwise recruited to by department.
Response:
During the last three years the following number of posts have been given up to cost improvement,
redundancy or not otherwise recruited to by the department
2 x band 3
2.8 x band 4
1 x band 5
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
3 x band 7
1 x band 8b
This information must be broken down by:
- Staff group
- Salary Band/Grade
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Disability
- Age group categorised using the following age bands 16 - 20, 21 - 25, 26 - 35, 36 - 45, 46 -
55, 56 – 65 and 65+.
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of information into the categories listed as
this information constitutes personal data and could allow identification of the individuals to whom
the data relates by association. This data is therefore exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of
Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
Personal information of third parties is exempt
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Staff
Headcount
FTE
Budgeted FTE
Starters Headcount
Starters FTE
Leavers Headcount
Leavers FTE
LTR Headcount %
% Leavers
LTR FTE %
Turnover -
vs
Permanent
Budgeted
Only
FTE
October
2010 -
September
2011
Human
59.00
53.85
62.3
2
1.80
12
11.80
20.34
18.94
21.91
Resources
Staff
Headcount
FTE
Budgeted FTE
Starters Headcount
Starters FTE
Leavers Headcount
Leavers FTE
LTR Headcount %
% Leavers
LTR FTE %
Turnover -
vs
Permanent
Budgeted
Only
FTE
October
2011 -
September
2012
Human
52.00
46.65
64.65
3
3.00
8
6.53
15.09
10.10
14.00
Resources
Staff
Headcount
FTE
Budgeted FTE
Starters Headcount
Starters FTE
Leavers Headcount
Leavers FTE
LTR Headcount %
% Leavers
LTR FTE %
Turnover -
vs
Permanent
Budgeted
Only
FTE
October
2012 –
September
2013
Human
54.50
48.78
65.8
9
8.80
13
12.20
23.85
18.54
25.01
Resources
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
6. How many grievances have been raised against the HR directorate over the last 3 years?
Clarified as:
With regards to question 6 of the request, I require data in relation to the whole of the HR
Directorate (includes Transformation, E-workforce, HR Business Partners, HR Service Centre,
Medical Staffing, Learning and Development and Occupational Health) but I would like the
information to have a breakdown by those categories above.
IN addition if it could be indicated which business partner looks after each sub directorate that
would be useful.
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide the names and responsibility of each of the HR Business
Partners as this information constitutes personal data. This data is therefore exempt under section
40 of the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
- The number of grievances raised by reason
Response:
From 2011 to date, the following numbers of grievances have been raised against the HR
Directorate.
8 x Bullying and Harassment
<5 x Failure to follow Policy
Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, due to the low number of cases represented above as “
<5” i.e. where there are fewer
than 5 cases meeting the specification of ‘failure to follow policy’, the Trust is unable to provide the
exact number of cases or a breakdown by department, as this could allow identification of those
involved and is therefore exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act. The Trust
reserves the right under the FOI Act to withhold information, including statistical information, if its
disclosure would breach the law of confidentiality in cases where small numbers may allow the
identification of individuals by association.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
Personal information of third parties is exempt
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
- The percentage of these grievances against total number of Trust grievances
Response:
2011/12 – 70%
2012/13 – 8.3%
April 2013 to date- up to date information is not available as not all cases have been logged onto
the system at this time.
- The timescale in which these grievances were investigated from the day the grievance was
put in writing.
Response:
Information not recorded.
- Whether these grievances were raised by employees internally working in the directorate or
externally working outside of the directorate but within the Trust
Response:
The grievances in question were raised by both internal and external employees to the HR
Directorate.
- The outcome of the grievances
Response:
Outcomes were recorded as one of the following:
• Outcome unknown
• No case to answer
• Case to answer
• Resolved informally
• Non-attendance by individual
- The grievances raised as broken down by the department they were raised against
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of grievances by department they were
raised against as low numbers in each category along with other information which may be
available could allow the identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore
exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
- The grievances raised as broken down by the department the employee is from who raised
the grievance.
Response:
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown grievances broken down by department the
employee worked in as low numbers in each category along with other information which may be
available could allow the identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore
exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
This information must be broken down by:
- Staff group
- Salary Band/Grade
- Ethnicity
- Gender
- Disability
- Age group categorised using the following age bands 16 - 20, 21 - 25, 26 - 35, 36 - 45, 46 -
55, 56 – 65 and 65+.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
Refusal to supply under Section 40 Personal Information
Regrettably, the Trust is unable to provide a breakdown of information into the categories listed as
low numbers in each category along with other information which may be available could allow the
identification of the individuals by association. This data is therefore exempt under section 40 of the
Freedom of Information Act.
We have applied the
First Principal of the Data Protection Act in order that it is not possible for
individuals to be identified.
Exemption Description
Reason/Explanation
Personal information of third parties is exempt
Section 40 (2) – Personal Information
from disclosure under Part II (Section 40 (2) -
Personal Information) of the Act.
Access to personal information is governed by
different legislation, the Data Protection Act
1998.
We hope that you will find the information provided both informative and helpful. We also hope that
you will be satisfied with the manner in which we have dealt with your Freedom of Information
request. If not, please do let me know or you may ask for an independent internal review under the
Freedom of Information complaints procedure at Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. Internal
review requests should be submitted within two months of the date of receipt of this response.
Please see the attached leaflet.
If you remain dissatisfied after the internal review, you may make an approach to the Information
Commissioner as outlined in the attached leaflet.
This completes the Trust response to your request, but please note:
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©
The information provided is the property of Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
and subject to Copyright Protection, Intellectual Property and Database Rights. You are
free to use the information supplied for your own use, including non-commercial
research purposes. However, any other type of re-use including for example publishing
the information or issuing copies to the public or any commercial application or use of
this information may be subject to the provisions of the Re-use of Public Sector
Information Regulations 2005. This means that if you wish to re-use the information
provided for commercial purposes for any reason you must ask us for permission to do
so. Should we agree that you can use the information it will be subject to the issue of a
licence, which may or may not involve a fee.
If you have any questions about this process please contact:
Information Governance Manager
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
Cliftonville, Northampton
NN1 5BD
Tel.(direct dial): 01604 523881
E-mail – xxx@xxx.xxx.xx
If there is anything you need clarification on, please do not hesitate to contact me on the above
address or if by e-mail to xxx@xxx.xxx.xx quoting the reference NGFOI 13/14:218 in any future
communications.
Yours sincerely,
Sarah Checketts
Information Governance Assistant
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust
Enc.
Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust is fully compliant with the Freedom of Information Act 2000
©