Information relating to an independant school: Talmud Torah Yetev Lev

The request was partially successful.

David Ostlander

Dear The Learning Trust,

This FOI request relates an independent Jewish school called Talmud Torah Yetev Lev (URN: 100289), based in your local authority of Hackney. Please also ensure to search your records for the terms "Yetev Lev" or "Satmar", as they relate to the same school.

1) Please provide details of any Learning Trust correspondence or meetings - including internal meetings -where the Yetev Lev school is mentioned or discussed (even if briefly), since 2003? For the meetings, this includes the names of the participants, minutes, memos and reports associated since 2003.

2) Please clarify whether the Learning Trust is obligated under Section 436A of the Education Act 1996, to make arrangements to establish the identities of children who are not pupils at schools and who are not otherwise receiving suitable education.

3) If so, has the Learning Trust ever established, or sought to establish, the identities of any unregistered pupils or year groups being taught at the Yetev Lev school?

Yours faithfully,

David Ostlander

Administrator,

Dear David Ostlander,

Thank you for logging your Information Request.

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Sean O'Regan,

Dear David,

Thank you for your email dated 12 July 2013. Hackney Learning Trust is looking into your request and will respond as soon as possible. However, I write to request some clarification of question 1 of your request. This school would have been mentioned in various types of meetings and correspondence since 2003 and conducting a search of our paper and electronic records will take a long time. Can you please specify the nature of the information you are looking for so that we can conduct our search more efficiently?

We have already gathered some correspondence to send in response to your request, however, locating and reading the minutes of all meetings where this school may have been discussed or mentioned since 2003 will take much longer. Is there any specific context you can provide, such as the nature of the discussion or any specific issues regarding the school, which will enable us to search the correct archives?

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
FOI & DPA Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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David Ostlander

Dear Sean O'Regan,

Thank you for the response to my FOI request.

Could you please provide a general list of the categories in which the school is mentioned (e.g. quality of education, school registration etc.) then I can inform you as to the ones I am specifically interested in.

Yours sincerely,

David Ostlander

Dear Sean O'Regan,

I noticed that you are also dealing with request for the Hackney Council, so please let me know if these are being dealt with under the same remit (i.e. does Hackney Council hold all records from the Learning Trust?).

To help you deal with question 1, please see these revisions and clarifications which should help limit the number of material you would need to search for.

a) Please change 2003 to 2007. So I am only requesting material from 2007 onwards.

2) I do not require any material where Yetev Lev is only mentioned as part of a wider list of schools, when the list is based on its geography or its independent status.

3) However, I would like any material where yetev lev is mentioned in the context of other Jewish independent schools in Hackney.

4) I would also like any correspondence made by the school to the DfE, and correspondence made by the DfE to the school.

Are there any further contextual categories I should consider, to help limit the scale of this request.

Yours sincerely,

David Ostlander

Sean O'Regan,

I am out of the office today and will return on Thursday 15th August.

If your email is urgent please send to [email address].

Regards,

Sean O’Regan

________________________________
Hackney Learning Trust (HLT) is the name used by Hackney Council for the part of the Council that provides education services. HLT is not a separate legal entity and is part of the Children and Young People’s Directorate of Hackney Council. All references to HLT means Hackney Council.

Sean O'Regan,

Dear David,

Thank you for your email dated 8 August. I will look into this matter and discuss with my colleagues who assisted with your initial request.

I shall of course update you if we are able to locate any additional information as quickly as possible.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
FOI & DPA Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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Dear Sean O'Regan,

I would just like to follow up on my FOI request. Please provide an update as soon as possible.

Yours sincerely,

David Ostlander

Sean O'Regan,

2 Attachments

Dear David,

I have liaised with my colleagues who assisted in responding to your initial request to see if Hackney Learning Trust holds any information relevant to your follow up request. Please find attached some notes from a meeting in May 2010 during which Yetev Lev School was mentioned in the context of other Jewish independent schools in Hackney.

My colleagues have searched their records thoroughly and, while there have been meetings about unregistered independent schools where registered independent schools were mentioned, this school has not been discussed specifically.

With regard to correspondence between the school and the DfE, we have also searched for any records, however, we have not been copied in to any such correspondence. The second attached document was produced by the DfE and addresses the general issue of 'off rolling'.

Unfortunately, it appears that Hackney Learning Trust can be of no further assistance in this matter.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
FOI & DPA Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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Dear Sean O'Regan,

Thank you very much for the response, and for providing the report by Ofsted.

One final follow up. On the meeting records it mentions that "the Trust received a legal challenge requesting all the information be returned."

Could you please provide a copy of this legal challenge letter?

Yours sincerely,

David Ostlander

Hackney Learning Trust

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[1]Sean O'Regan

Subject: RE: Freedom of Information request - Information relating to an
independant school: Talmud Torah Yetev Lev

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Dear Sean O'Regan,

It seems my last email didn't go through. But apologies if you get this twice.

Thank you very much for the document, and for providing the report by Ofsted.
My main focus is on this school in particular.

One final follow up. On the meeting records it mentions that "the
Trust received a legal challenge requesting all the information be
returned."

Could you please provide a copy of this legal challenge letter?

Yours faithfully,

David Ostlander

Sean O'Regan,

Dear Mr Ostlander,

Unfortunately, I am unable to locate a copy of this letter. I have searched our paper records and the email inboxes of staff who have since left Hackney Learning Trust but am unable to find the letter.

I am sorry I cannot be more helpful in this response.

Kind regards
.......................................................
Sean O’Regan
Paralegal,
FOI & DPA Officer
Hackney Learning Trust
1 Reading Lane, London, E8 1GQ
020 8820 7382
0 sean.o'[email address]
.......................................................

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