This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'Cathedral Yard Fire 28th October 2016 - Copies of Records'.

Appendix A – Public Interest Test 
Exemptions applied to: Witness statements or notes taken by the officers who 
compiled the official report relating to the Cathedral Yard Fire issued by Devon and 
Somerset Fire and Rescue Service. 
 
Exemption No. Name  
Section 36: Prejudice to the effective conduct of Public Affairs 
Factors for disclosure 
Factors for withholding 
•  There has been criticism expressed by  •  Disclosure would inhibit firefighters 
a few individuals and reported in the 
in providing a free and frank 
media that the ‘whole picture’ relating 
exchange of views as part of 
to this incident was not being made 
debriefs following an incident, which 
available.   
would have a significant adverse 
•  Non-disclosure could increase the 
impact on the Service’s ability to 
opinion of a few individuals that the 
develop operational learning with 
Service has something to hide. 
consequential impacts on firefighter 
safety and public safety.  
•  A great deal of additional information 
used to compile the public report 
•  The Service has already published 
produced by the Service would be 
a report on this incident (available 
available for scrutiny. 
on the Service website) and has 
published substantial information 
about the incident on its website. 
•  Following suggestion by the 
Service, the Ministry of Housing, 
Communities and Local 
Government commissioned and 
published an independent ‘Fires of 
Special Interest’ report (produced by 
the Building Research 
Establishment) in November 2018, 
which looked at the fire spread from 
No 18 (where the fire originated) to 
the hotel.  This report is also 
available on the Service website 
•  At the request of the Service, an 
independent review conducted on 
behalf of the National Fire Chiefs 
Council by West Midlands Fire 
Service is looking at: the process of 
compiling the report published by 
the Service; the range of evidence 
gathered to substantiate the report; 
and whether any evidence 
corroborates the public allegations 
that the Command decisions 
ignored information that may have 

affected firefighting operations.  
Further information wil  be published 
as a result of that review. 
•  The Terms of Reference for the 
NFCC review is published on the 
Service website. 
Reasons why the public interest favours withholding information  
•  Safeguarding the effectiveness of the process for learning from operational 
incidents is of critical importance in terms of firefighter and public safety and is 
the primary consideration. 
•  Significant information about the incident is available on the Service website. 
•  A ‘Fires of Special Interest’ report has been published by the Ministry of Housing, 
Communities and Local Government and is available on the Service website. 
•  The National Fire Chiefs Council has been asked to undertake an independent 
review to examine issues surrounding the report published by the Service and the 
public allegations about Command decisions.  The terms of reference for this 
review are published on the Service website.  
•  Further information wil  be published as a result of the NFCC review.