Gagging Orders in Secret Family Courts

Mrs Docherty made this Freedom of Information request to Kent County Council This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

The request was partially successful.

Dear Sir or Madam,

In the wake of the people speaking out against the abuses of the secret family courts and forced adoption of children to strangers, instead of being retained within their real natural families. I would like to know how your authority compares to others in fulfilling your responsibilities to families & their children.

(a) How many individuals have been taken to court by your authority in-order to gag them. To stop them from speaking out about the injustices they have suffered at the hands of the council children's social services and secret family courts. Provide all records to-date that are held.

(b) How much did these gagging order injunctions cost the rate payer.

(c) Who is responsible for actioning these enforcement orders by the council, i.e. who signs the applications for court.

(d) How many parents /relatives/individuals have received further sanctions for breaking these gagging orders.

(e) Are any of these decisions to gag/sanction taken by unelected local authority officers responsible for children’s social care, finance, legal or any other relevant department.

(f) If councillors make these decisions at which meeting(s) are these discussed.

Yours faithfully,

Mrs Docherty

Kent County Council

Dear Mrs Docherty

I acknowledge your request for information under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000. Assuming we hold this information, I will endeavour
to supply the data to you as soon as possible but no later than 11th
November 2009 (20 working days from date of receipt).

I will advise you as soon as possible if we do not hold this information
or if there are exemptions to be considered and/or any costs for providing
the information. Please quote our reference - FOI/09/1163 - in any
communication regarding this particular request.

Best regards

Corporate Access to Information Team, Chief Executive's Department
Kent County Council, Legal & Democratic Services, Room 1.94, Sessions
House, County Hall, Maidstone. ME14 1XQ.
Tel: 01622 696265 or 01622 694261 - Fax: 01622 694383
[1]http://www.kent.gov.uk/council-and-democ...

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Ms Wilson (Account suspended) left an annotation ()

Watch the CON-servative party and others appear to come to the rescue and raise this issue suddenly next year in order to get more votes. Dont be fooled they are all defacto and in this up to their necks and will use any issue to fool the sheeple.

What are any of them doing about this NOW - NOTHING

Dear Sir or Madam,

This request is overdue a response. By law, Kent County Council should normally have answered by 10 November 2009.

Yours faithfully,

Mrs Docherty

Kent County Council

Dear Mrs Docherty

Thank you for your request for information and last week's reminder email
. Please accept my apologies for the slight delay in replying to your
request. I appreciate that the Council has not complied with statutory
timescales on this occasion.

Using the lettering in the original request, the answers to your questions
are as follows:-

(a) Three people have been the subject of applications to the court in
children's cases to prevent them publicising the facts of their cases. One
was yourself and the other two individuals were relating to a case
involving the same child. Obviously we can not provide details of the
other two individuals, or their case, as this would be a breach of the
first Data Protection principle and therefore the information is exempt
from disclosure under section 40(2) of the Freedom of Information Act
2000.

(b) With regard to the other case, Kent County Council obtained an order
for costs against one of the parties who had threatened to go to the
press, and they paid it, so KCC incurred no overall expense. With regard
to your case, the cost of KCC's in-house solicitors' time and the cost of
Counsel to represent KCC in High Court totalled £1675.

(c) Applications of this kind are made on the instruction of Children,
Families & Education as a result of a decision taken or authorised at
district manager level. The actual form of application to the court will
be signed by the Director of Law & Governance or on his behalf.

(d) KCC has not had to go back to court yet for any breach of the orders
we've obtained.

(e) Decisions to apply for orders of this kind are taken by officers.

(f) Not applicable.

If you are unhappy with this response, and believe KCC has not complied
with legislation, please ask for a review by following our complaints
process; details can be found at this link
[1]http://www.kent.gov.uk/council-and-democ...
on our website. Please quote reference FOI/09/1163

If you still remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you can
appeal to the Information Commissioner, who oversees compliance with the
Freedom of Information Act 2000. Details of what you need to do, should
you wish to pursue this course of action, are available from the
Information Commissioner*s website
[2]http://www.ico.gov.uk/complaints/freedom...

Best regards

Caroline Dodge
Corporate Access to Information Coordinator, Chief Executive's Department
Kent County Council, Legal & Democratic Services, Room 1.94, Sessions
House, County Hall, Maidstone. ME14 1XQ.
Tel: 01622 221652 - Fax: 01622 694383
[3]http://www.kent.gov.uk/council-and-democ...

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