Asbestos in Suffolk schools

The request was partially successful.

Dear Suffolk County Council,

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please provide me with the following information:

1. The names of the schools in your county that contain asbestos.
2. The date and outcome of the last independent audit or inspection of each of these schools Asbestos Management Plans.
3. The details of any reported incidents of asbestos exposure in these schools between 2011 and 2016.
4. Details of any improvement or prohibition notice served or guidance issued by the HSE in relation to the management of asbestos in schools in your county in the last 5 years.
5. The number of school employees (existing and retired staff to include teaching staff, school support staff and caretakers, etc) and ex-pupils that have pursued a claim against you for exposure to asbestos within a school in your county.
6. The number of these claims that have been settled.
7. The amount of money that has been paid in settlement of these claims (with and without your authority accepting responsibility).

I understand that under the Act I am entitled to a response within 20 working days of your receipt of this request. Some parts of the request may be easier to answer than others. Should this be the case, I request that you release information as soon as possible.

If my request is denied in whole or in part, I ask that you justify all deletions by reference to specific exemptions of the Act. I will also expect you to release all non-exempt material. I reserve the right to appeal your decision to withhold any information or to charge excessive
fees.

I would prefer to receive the information electronically.

If you require any clarification, please contact me in accordance with your duty under Section 16 to provide advice and assistance if you find any aspect of this FOI request problematic.

Please acknowledge receipt of this request by email. I look forward to receiving the information in the near future.

Yours faithfully,

Lucie Stephens

Information Management Services, Suffolk County Council

INFORMATION REQUEST – ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Thank you for your request, here is your reference number 13928. Please quote this in any future correspondence you may have with us.

We will process your request in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 as appropriate. We aim to answer your request within 20 working days from the date we received it.

While no charges are made for the submission of requests, the council is entitled to apply reasonable costs for disbursements (i.e. photocopying, postage etc).  Where such costs are under £5.00 the council is pleased to make no charge, however, if costs exceed that limit then these additional costs are payable to the council.  Where charges will apply proper notice will be given to you prior to the information being released.  For more information on charges please use the following link to our website: http://www.suffolk.gov.uk/about/freedom-...

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

Yours sincerely,

Performance and Information Management
Suffolk County Council
Endeavour House
8 Russell Road
Ipswich
IP1 2BX

Tel:     01473 265960
Fax:    01473 216843
Email: [email address]

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Information Management Services, Suffolk County Council

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INFORMATION REQUEST RESPONSE

Thank you for your request for information, reference number 13928. Please quote this in any future correspondence you may have with us.

Please find attached a copy of our response to the information you requested.

Most information supplied by Suffolk County Council will have been produced within the Council and will continue to be protected by copyright.  You are free to use it for your own purposes, including for private study and non-commercial research, and for any other purpose authorised by an exception in current copyright law.  Documents (except photographs) can be also used in the UK without requiring permission for the purposes of news reporting.  Any other reuse, for example commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright holder.

If the information you have been sent includes a copyright statement, you must not alter or remove this statement.  For information about re-using copyright see the Office of Public Sector Information website at www.opsi.gov.uk.  The copyright in some documents may rest with a third party.  For information about obtaining permission from a third party see the Intellectual Property Office’s website at www.ipo.gov.uk.

If you are dissatisfied with the way your request has been handled, you have the right to ask for an internal review.  Under Regulation 11(2), internal review requests should be submitted within 40 working days of the date of this letter and should be sent to: Information Management Services, Constantine House, Constantine Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 2DH or, alternatively, by email at [email address].

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,

Performance and Information Management
Suffolk County Council
Endeavour House
8 Russell Road
Ipswich
IP1 2BX

Tel:     01473 265960
Fax:    01473 216843
Email: [email address]

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