Mysterious PWC report on Ian Floyd and Kersten England's Directorate (2015)

The request was partially successful.

Dear City of York Council,

Under the FOI Act

Please provide me with
1. the Terms of Reference for the PWC review of the Council's Central Services - Ian Floyd'd Directorate and the CEO Office
2 who wrote the Tor and who initiated the work, on whose authority!
3. Please provide me with a copy of the final report which was sent to the Council in 2015 (what date was it received?) How many drafts were there?
4. Would you please confirm how much was paid for the consultancy work.
5. Can you also name and confirm which members were sent the report
6. Can you confirm which committees saw the report and its findings.
7. Can you confirm which chief officers saw the final report?
8. Can you provide the implementation plan of what recommendations were implemented from this significant expenditure?

Yours faithfully,
Gwen Swinburn

foi@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

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For information :

* The timescale for responding to Freedom of Information Act (FOI) and Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) requests is up to 20 working days. We will contact you promptly if we need you to clarify your request or an extension to complete a public interest test.

* The timescale for responding to requests for personal information under the Data Protection Act (DPA) subject access to records is 40 calendar days. We will contact you promptly if we require further information from you.

* The timescale for responding to requests for a review is up to 15 working days. You are also able to contact the Information Commissioner, contact details below:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Tel: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745 if you prefer to use a national rate number
Fax: 01625 524 510
Or email: [email address]<mailto:[email address]> (please include your telephone number)

Regards
Customer Feedback Team

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foi@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

1 Attachment

Dear Ms Swinburn,
 
Please find attached the council’s response to this enquiry.
 
Yours sincerely,
 
Cath Murray
 
Cath Murray | Customer Complaints & Feedback Manager  
t: 01904 554145 | e: [1][email address]
 
City of York Council  | Customer Complaints & Feedback Team, Customer &
Business Support Services
West Offices | Station Rise | York YO1 6GA
[2]www.york.gov.uk | [3]facebook.com/cityofyork | [4]@CityofYork
 
 
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Dear City of York Council,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of City of York Council's handling of my FOI request 'Mysterious PWC report on Ian Floyd and Kersten England's Directorate (2015)'.

I am informed that a report has been written for this £18k and would you request a review. The fact that the interim CX didn't like the work dhould not deny us the information.

So it seems top staffers are gain spending vast sums of money with 'no record'

Please supply the report and invoices

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/m...

Yours faithfully,

Gwen Swinburn

foi@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

Thank you for your email. Please note this is an automatically generated receipt to let you know we have received your email.

For information :

* The timescale for responding to Freedom of Information Act (FOI) and Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) requests is up to 20 working days. We will contact you promptly if we need you to clarify your request or an extension to complete a public interest test.

* The timescale for responding to requests for personal information under the Data Protection Act (DPA) subject access to records is 40 calendar days. We will contact you promptly if we require further information from you.

* The timescale for responding to requests for a review is up to 15 working days. You are also able to contact the Information Commissioner, contact details below:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Tel: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745 if you prefer to use a national rate number
Fax: 01625 524 510
Or email: [email address]<mailto:[email address]> (please include your telephone number)

Regards
Customer Feedback Team

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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foiresponses_NO-REPLY@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

Dear Ms Swinburn

Following your request for an internal review, this is underway however we need to advise you, it will not include a response to your new request for information for "invoices".

This is because it was not part of your original FOIA enquiry and also, as you have already asked for this information, directly from a member of council staff, as part of the inspection of accounts.

Yours sincerely

Customer Feedback Team
01904 554145

City of York Council | West Offices, Station Rise, York, YO1 6GA
www.york.gov.uk | facebook.com/cityofyork | @CityofYork

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Dear [email address],

Ok, on the invoices I have already asked under citizens audit but as I did t know the date conmissioned I was wary that I might miss out on any early invoices before the last FY as KE commissioned. If so I will, guess what, have to submit another FOI. But since you say you have no records of any of this £18k spend, this looks like it will take us all, including external auditors and oversight bodies some considerable time and money- but since taxpayers pay for all this it seems incentives are perverse for those who think they can spend our money as they wish. Let's hope the review will evidence the contract, purchasing modalities, outputs and what we got for our £18k.

Gwen

Yours sincerely,

Gwen Swinburn

foiresponses_NO-REPLY@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

Please note the email address you sent your email to, is used only for sending purposes and not monitored. This means all emails sent to this address will not be seen by any council officers and will also be deleted.
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foiresponses_NO-REPLY@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

1 Attachment

Dear Ms Swinburn,
 
Please find attached a response to your request for an internal review.  I
apologise for the delay in responding.
 
Yours sincerely
 
Geoff Beveridge | Information Governance Adviser   
t: 01904 554145 | e: [1][City of York Council request email]
 
City of York Council  |  Customer Complaints & Feedback Team, Customer &
Business Support Services
West Offices | Station Rise | York YO1 6GA
[2]www.york.gov.uk | [3]facebook.com/cityofyork | [4]@CityofYork
 
 
 

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Andy Clark left an annotation ()

Cover up.

Michael Hammill left an annotation ()

What is "safe space"?

Gwen Swinburn left an annotation ()

So hapless City of york staffers didn't like PWC report so blame them for mistake ridden report that will apparently cause such outrage that multiple (wasteful 😉) FOIs will result.

They 'find' a 'draft' 'presentation' which only 'came to light' after this issue became part of a formal validated objection to the Council's accounts.

They still don't admit they have found the full report ( just a 'presentation'. We paid over £23k for this review of Floyd's department and it looks like it had been buried.

I have held off going to the ICO on this because the external auditors are investigating. But it is necessary for the ICO to establish that there is indeed a full report for our £23/5k not a mere 'presentation'.

I have accordingly sent an foi review request to ICO and will be taking it further in CYC and with the portfolio holder, Leader, chair & deputy of A& G and the chair and deputy of corporate scrutiny.

This looks like a report Mr Floyd wanted burying - but that isn't going to happen. They said they didn't have the report, then they admit they find a mistake ridden draft presentation - ... whistleblowers tell me this was a full report which was very critical of Mr Floyd's department- hence it was buried. But why would the Councillors allow that, considering the multiple costly issues that department is involved with, including the Public Interest Report.

Gwen

Neil Wilby left an annotation ()

Exquisitely drafted S36 exemption. But the argument underpinning it is, I would submit, surprisingly threadbare.

The essential presumption under S1 of the Act is for disclosure.

https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/gui...

The 'open space' and 'extra cost to Council' reasons would not, to the man (or woman) on the Clapham omnibus, outweigh that when put in the balance.

Especially when the report sought has cost £23,000.

Gwen Swinburn left an annotation ()

Thanks Neil

The ICO has this including your points. I need to learn the sections in more detail. Advice always welcome

Gwen

Gwen Swinburn left an annotation ()

Great news, the ICO has validated this objection and is investigating. It appears that even though nothing could be found for my FOi, and only an invoice could be found under my legal rights under citizen audit - the external auditors- upon investigation of my valid accounts objection- have managed to rustle up some more information. I can comment on this further only upon publication of the audit and governance agenda for 20 December (extra meeting). I will update again then. Meanwhile I have only the invoice.

Gwen Swinburn left an annotation ()

1st March Update

The external auditors, as part of my validated accounts objection say the procurement was fine and PWC produced a 118 page report including annexes, which is excellent news denied to me.. The report, according to a high level whistleblower reviewed and was very critical of the central department CBBS, as the report was buried by at least the last two chief executives, current one may not even know if it's existence, I cannot confirm either way.

Considering the statutory officers well known, well publicised and ongoing increasingly desperate attempts to bury critical reports about their departments it is important that this report sees the light of day.

The ICO is investigating. The case officer will find the related attempts by top staffers to suppress critical reports informative, quickly captured through these links and city of york Audit and Governance committee webcast 22feb
https://twitter.com/gswinburn/status/834...

Once again I have yet to find Councillors aware of this report, which I am sure they, like citizens would be keen to read, whether implemented or not. Please note a few months later a reorganisation was undertaken.... but what did the report say? And why has it been hidden? £18k .....

Gwen Swinburn left an annotation ()

In an extensive Decision notice ( not yet on Ico site) the ICO has ruled that in the public interest the presentation must be published under threat of court action. Many questions remain including why (apparently) this (apparently) very critical report of S151 department was (apparently) deleted by ( apparently) all ( staff and [apparentky] Councillors [if indeed any councillors were sent it at all) recipients within one year. Now why would that be?

Councillors will no doubt have more confidence in PWC data retention systems.

The report can be found secreted deep in the extraordinarily opaque (non) disclosure log here

https://www.york.gov.uk/downloads/file/1...

It is long and is quite clear why the report was buried- to spend all that money with all the revelations on Dir Floyd’s Department we can see why we are in the mess now.

On the online CYC report did not record the correct date of my foi which was from 2015. Not did they attach the Ico decision notice against them / par fro the course I’m afraid. Also attached here
https://www.york.gov.uk/download/downloa...

https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-tak...

City of york please correct your erroneous record and attach the link to the Ico report
Yours sincerely,

Gwen Swinburn

foiresponses_NO-REPLY@york.gov.uk, City of York Council

Please note the email address you sent your email to, is used only for sending purposes and not monitored. This means all emails sent to this address will not be seen by any council officers and will also be deleted.
Please resend your email to [City of York Council request email]

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