History Plan of Study

The request was successful.

Dear Department for Education,
Please could you tell me the names of the people (aside from civil-servants) involved in writing the new History Plan of Study (Published 7th of February)and what role they took in its compilation.

Yours faithfully,
Loic Menzies

Department for Education

Dear Mr Menzies

Thank you for your recent enquiry. A reply will be sent to you as soon as possible. For information the departmental standard for correspondence received is that responses should be sent within 20 working days as you are requesting information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Your correspondence has been allocated reference number 2013/

Thank you

Department for Education
Public Communications Unit
Tel: 0370 000 2288

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Department for Education

Dear Mr Menzies

Thank you for your recent enquiry. A reply will be sent to you as soon as possible. For information the departmental standard for correspondence received is that responses should be sent within 20 working days as you are requesting information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Your correspondence has been allocated reference number 2013/0009574

Thank you

Department for Education
Public Communications Unit
Tel: 0370 000 2288

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Department for Education

Dear Mr Menzies,
Thank you for your request of 11 February under the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 (“the Act”) in which you ask for the names of people involved in
writing the proposed programmes of study for history; and any specific
role they took.  

I can confirm that no-one outside the Department was directly involved in
writing the draft programmes of study which were published on 7 February,
but we consulted a range of experts to inform the drafting.  The
Department plans to publish, in due course, a list of individuals who were
directly consulted in the process of developing the draft programmes of
study for all subjects, including history. However, information about
these individuals is being withheld at present because an exemption under
Section 22 of the Act applies.   

Section 22 provides for information to be exempt from disclosure where the
information is held by the Department with a view to its publication by
the Department or any other person at some future date.  It was so held at
the time your request was made, and the Department believes that it is
reasonable in all the circumstances that the information should be
withheld until the planned date of publication.

Section 22 of the Act is a qualified exemption which means that a public
interest test needs to be carried out, and in doing so the following
factors have been considered: 

·         It is acknowledged that there is a general public interest in
disclosure because of the need for there to be open and transparent
government and that the sharing of information with the public should be
free and open. 

·         However, the public interest in permitting the Government to
publish information in a manner and at a time of its own choosing is also
important. It is part of the effective conduct of public affairs that the
general publication of information is a conveniently planned and managed
activity within the reasonable control of the public authority. 

·         The Government has already determined that it will publish on
the Department’s website in due course a list of individuals who were
consulted in the process of developing the programmes of study for all
subjects, including those who contributed to the development of the
history programmes of study.  This list is currently being checked for
accuracy and the individuals concerned alerted to planned publication,
prior to it being released.

·         It is not reasonable for the Government to be expected to
release piecemeal information in advance of its planned publication of the
list of those who have assisted in the development of the draft programmes
of study, and there is a strong argument in favour of allowing everyone to
view this information at the same time. If it were to release this
information as requested on varying occasions this would result in partial
and potentially inaccurate information being released over a protracted
period, leading to confusion.

The arguments for and against release have been considered and it is the
Department’s view that the balance of public interest falls in favour of
the maintenance of this exemption in relation to the information relating
to this request. I will however contact you with a link to this
information as soon as it is available on the Department’s website.   

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please
remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

If you are unhappy with the way your request has been handled, you should
make a complaint to the Department by writing to me within two calendar
months of the date of this letter.  Your complaint will be considered by
an independent review panel, who were not involved in the original
consideration of your request. 

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint to the
Department, you may then contact the Information Commissioner’s Office.

 
Your correspondence has been allocated reference number 2013/0009574. If
you need to respond to us, please visit [1]www.education.gov.uk/contactus,
and quote your reference number.

Yours sincerely,

Elaine Schollar
National Curriculum Review Division
[email address]
[2]www.education.gov.uk

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References

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Department for Education

Dear Mr Menzies,

Further to Elaine Schollar's email of 7 March responding to your correspondence of 11 February about the proposed programmes of study for history, I am writing to confirm that the list of people involved in discussions about the content of the new programmes of study for all subjects has now been published. The list can be accessed via this link:
https://media.education.gov.uk/assets/fi...

Yours sincerely

Maleck Boodoo
National Curriculum Review Division
DfE, Sanctuary Buildings
0207- 340 8119

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