Dear Mr Froame

RE: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 - REQUEST FOR INFORMATION - Our Ref: 006706/20

With reference to your e-mail received 30/11/2020 requesting information:

(1) Do you have a written policy, practice, order, direction or other document which sets out your policy on the use of CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray by your service members and/or staff? If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current policy version, as well as copies of any version which has been in force at any time from 1 January 2018 to 28 November 2020.

(2) Do you provide or arrange training (of any form, and delivered by any means) for your service members and/or staff, on the use of CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray? If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current version of the training syllabus/particulars etc. which is delivered as of 28 November 2020. Please note, I am not seeking disclosure of specific training materials or course content, but rather a relatively concise precis of the subject matter/content of the training.

(3) Do you provide or arrange training (of any form, and delivered by any means) for your service members and/or staff, on first aid etc. to be given following the use of CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray in the event that the subject or any other person suffers an adverse reaction to the administration of the noxious substance (such as an allergic reaction, or the loss of or reduction in vision or visual acuity which does not correct promptly and without intervention, or difficulty with breathing, or anaphylaxis, or any other similar adverse reaction)? If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current version of the training syllabus/particulars etc. which is delivered as of 28 November 2020, as well as complete copies of all course materials which are deployed/used before, during or after the training.

(4) Do you keep records of incidents involving the deployment of CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray where the subject or any other person has suffered an adverse reaction which has required the administration of any first aid etc. referenced in your answer to (3) and/or attention from a registered healthcare practitioner, such as a paramedic, doctor, or nurse? If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide full particulars of the record media/content which would be completed and retained in such circumstances, as well as copies of any document templates etc. which are in use. Please note, I am not seeking information concerning any particular or specific "real" incident which might have transpired, but rather information concerning the information/datasets which you *would* collect following a relevant incident, as well as copies of the forms/paperwork templates, which would be used to gather/record that information/dataset.

This is to inform you that Northamptonshire Police are currently dealing with high levels of demand for information. Every effort will be made to ensure that you receive an appropriate response on time, however, we may not be able to complete the response to your request within 20 working days. The ICO is aware and we are currently enacting a recovery plan.

On behalf of Northamptonshire Police, I do apologise for any inconvenience that may be caused by this delay and if you wish to discuss this any further then please contact the undersigned.

Northamptonshire Police provides a review and appeals procedure within the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. If you decide to make an appeal and, having followed the full process you are still dissatisfied, you will then have the right to direct your comments to the Information Commissioner who will give due consideration to the matter. See Appendix 'a' attached.

Northamptonshire Police routinely publish information on our website via the Publication Scheme. The aim of the Publication Scheme is to promote openness and transparency by voluntarily placing information into the public arena.
The Disclosure Log contains copies of information that has been disclosed by Northamptonshire Police in response to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Whilst it is not possible to publish all responses we will endeavour to publish those where we feel that the information disclosed is in the wider public interest. The Disclosure Log will be updated once responses have been sent to the requester.

I have provided the relevant link below.

https://www.northants.police.uk/foi-ai/a...

Yours sincerely

Gemma Barrie
C1374 Gemma Barrie| Freedom of Information Officer and Researcher
Force Information Unit | Professional Standards Department
Northamptonshire Police

Telephone: 101 | Ext No. 343701 - (If calling from outside Northamptonshire, please call 03000 111 222)
Email: [email address]<mailto:[email address]>
Address: Force Headquarters, Wootton Hall, Wootton Hall Park, Northampton NN4 0JQ

Northamptonshire Police "Putting Communities First"

The content of this email should be treated as RESTRICTED unless otherwise indicated

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Dear Mr Froame   

RE: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 - REQUEST FOR INFORMATION Our Ref: 006706/20

With reference to your e-mail received 01/12/2020 requesting information
reproduced below:

(1)         Do you have a written policy, practice, order, direction or
other document which sets out your policy on the use of CS incapacitant
gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray by your service members
and/or staff? 

If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current
policy version, as well as copies of any version which has been in force
at any time from 1 January 2018 to 28 November 2020.

(2)     Do you provide or arrange training (of any form, and delivered by
any means) for your service members and/or staff, on the use of CS
incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray?

If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current
version of the training syllabus/particulars etc. which is delivered as of
28 November 2020.  Please note, I am not seeking disclosure of specific
training materials or course content, but rather a relatively concise
precis of the subject matter/content of the training.

(3)         Do you provide or arrange training (of any form, and delivered
by any means) for your service members and/or staff, on first aid etc. to
be given following the use of CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA
incapacitant gas/spray in the event that the subject or any other person
suffers an adverse reaction to the administration of the noxious substance
(such as an allergic reaction, or the loss of or reduction in vision or
visual acuity which does not correct promptly and without intervention, or
difficulty with breathing, or anaphylaxis, or any other similar adverse
reaction)?

If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide copies of the current
version of the training syllabus/particulars etc. which is delivered as of
28 November 2020, as well as complete copies of all course materials which
are deployed/used before, during or after the training.

(4)         Do you keep records of incidents involving the deployment of 
CS incapacitant gas/spray and/or PAVA incapacitant gas/spray where the
subject or any other person has suffered an adverse reaction which has
required the administration of any first aid etc. referenced in your
answer to (3) and/or attention from a registered healthcare practitioner,
such as a paramedic, doctor, or nurse? 

If the answer is in the affirmative, please provide full particulars of
the record media/content which would be completed and retained in such
circumstances, as well as copies of any document templates etc. which are
in use.  Please note, I am not seeking information concerning any
particular or specific "real" incident which might have transpired, but
rather information concerning the information/datasets

which you *would* collect following a relevant incident, as well as copies
of the forms/paperwork templates, which would be used to gather/record
that information/dataset.

For questions 1-3 I have to advise you that Northamptonshire Police is not
obliged to provide all of this information you have requested under the
Freedom of Information Act 2000. Please take this letter as a Refusal
Notice to this particular request.

Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 requires
Northamptonshire Police, when refusing to provide such information
(because the information is exempt within the provisions of the Act) is
required to provide you, the applicant, with a Notice which:

a) states the fact that an exemption has been applied

b) specifies the exemption in question, and

c) states why the exemption applies (if that would not otherwise be
apparent)

The statutory exemption applicable to the information not disclosed is as
follows:

Section 21 – Information reasonably accessible by other means

This is an Absolute Class Based Exemption and is therefore not subject to
a harm or public interest test.

Northamptonshire Police adhere to the guidelines outlined within the
National Police Chiefs’ Council Personal Safety Manual. A redacted version
of this (all modules) has already been released into the public domain by
the College of Policing and under section 21 of the Act, we are not
required to provide information in response to a request if it is already
reasonably accessible to you. This information can be accessed via the
link below:

[1]library.college.police.uk/HeritageScripts/Hapi.dll/search2?searchterm=%22personal%20safety%20manual%22&Fields=%40&Media=PDF&Bool=AND

However, we are withholding the redacted information by virtue of the
following exemption:

Section 31(1)(a) – Law Enforcement

Section 31 is a qualified, prejudice based exemption and as such I am
required to complete a Public Interest Test.

Harm

Northamptonshire Police are charged with enforcing the law, preventing and
detecting crime and protecting the communities we serve. Disclosing all of
the requested information would impact on the force’s operational and
tactical capabilities by providing members of the public with valuable
knowledge of the processes we adhere to which could assist those with
criminal intent to avoid detection.

Factors Favouring Disclosure

It is clear that there is a public interest in public authorities
operating in as transparent a manner as possible, as this should ensure
they operate effectively and efficiently. Police Forces need to be
properly equipped in order to meet the demands placed upon them. This
information could go some way towards reassuring the public that the
Northamptonshire Police Force is adequately prepared in all areas.

Factors Favouring non-Disclosure

However, Northamptonshire Police must also consider the wider impact of
disclosing specific detail about police training. By the very nature of
our work, the disclosure of the information requested carries the
potential risk of highlighting areas of weakness within police training.
There is evidence that criminals use information to change tactics and
method of attack.

This information, if released, could compromise law enforcement tactics,
which may hinder the Police force’s ability to prevent and detect crime
and could be detrimental to the effective operation of policing
activities. This in turn could compromise the safety of the public and the
inappropriate release of information could cause damage to the service and
the community. This would impact on trust and confidence within the local
communities, with particular areas feeling vulnerable, criminal activities
would increase within these areas. Where current or future law enforcement
capabilities of the force may be compromised by the release of
information, it is unlikely to be in the interest of the public.

Balancing Test

The public interest test is a consideration of whether the community
benefit of possession of the information outweighs the potential harm of
releasing that information. It is not an evaluation of what interests the
public. We recognise that the public interest in being open and
transparent is of great importance to all and release of information may
assist in the public being more aware of the work that the police are
carrying out.

Having considered the arguments for and against release, the public
interest test favours non-release of material which directly impacts on
any on-going or future investigations. The greater public interest is
served in maintaining the integrity of the justice process, and this in
turn favours maintaining the exemption in relation to the withheld
tactical material. Northamptonshire will not disclose information that
could compromise the future law enforcement role of the force.

Q3 Yes. All our officers receive aftercare training to mitigate suffering
to those exposed to PAVA. Officers are also trained in First Aid which
will enable them to deal with adverse reactions. If required the
individuals will be taken to hospital for treatment. Please see link and
exemption above.

Q4 Yes. Unfortunately we are unable to provide a copy of this form as it
is not electronically extractable from our systems.

I trust you find this information to be satisfactory but if you have any
further queries please do not hesitate to contact me. On behalf of
Northamptonshire Police I would like to apologise for the delay in getting
this information to you.

Northamptonshire Police provides a review and appeals procedure within the
terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. If you decide to make an
appeal and, having followed the full process you are still dissatisfied,
you will then have the right to direct your comments to the Information
Commissioner who will give due consideration to the matter. See Appendix
'a' attached.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Barrie

C1374 Gemma Barrie| Senior Freedom of Information Officer and Researcher

Force Information Unit | Professional Standards Department

Northamptonshire Police

Telephone: 101 | Ext No. 343701/ 341172 - (If calling from outside
Northamptonshire, please call 03000 111 222)

Email: [2][email address]

Address: Force Headquarters, Wootton Hall, Wootton Hall Park, Northampton
NN4 0JQ

Northamptonshire Police "Putting Communities First"

The content of this email should be treated as RESTRICTED unless otherwise
indicated

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