the lead on this FOI case. If you are not the correct team, we
would be grateful if you would advise us of the right team to
approach for this and other similar requests. Thank you.
DHSC is at risk of legal sanctions from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if we do not meet the legal deadline.
Request
Dear Department of Health and Social Care,
I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding a meeting your organisation attended on 26th June
2024, arranged by the PA Schools Council (PASC) to discuss the PA profession.
Specifically, I seek the following:
1. All email correspondence your organisation holds related to this meeting.
2. Any documents, including but not limited to PowerPoint presentations and meeting notes, submitted in advance of or presented during the
meeting.
3. Any outcome documents, such as copies of minutes or action plans from post-meeting discussions.
PLEASE NOTE:
We are only obliged to provide recorded information held by DHSC; we are not obliged to create data to meet the request.
We are not required to seek out information from other organisations in order to reply to an FOI request.
Please ensure you address all questions that the requester is asking and that you have fully understood the question(s).
As the policy holder, it is your responsibility to work with other teams for any relevant contributions/clearances.
Private Office, SpAds and Perm Sec's Office will only be responsible for cases pertaining specifically to ministers, SofS and the Perm Sec. If there
is a policy element to a request, the policy holder will be responsible for the case and will need to work with Private Office/SpAds/Perm Sec's
Office on any necessary clearances. For Private Office/SpAds cases, please contact Private Office FOI lead
@dhsc.gov.uk). For cases relating to the Perm Sec, please contact Perm Sec's Office directly.
If you believe that this request carries media interest, you should contact press office at
@dhsc.gov.uk to inform them of
your planned response.
Using section 12 (cost limit)
If you think that locating, extracting and retrieving information for the request may exceed the cost limit, please complete the costs estimation
form (https://intranet dhsc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/FOI-S12-Costs-Estimation-Form.xlsx).
We are required to provide advice and assistance on how the request can be refined to bring it within the cost limit, so please also include this
information in your contribution.
Please note that time taken for redactions and reviewing exemptions cannot be included in the cost calculator.
The benefit of using the costs estimation form is evidencing the gravitas of the task, which can be communicated to the requester. This will help
to reduce follow-up FOI requests that have not been refined enough in scope. Furthermore, this will also support as evidence if an FOI response
results in a complaint to the ICO.
FOI Declaration of Compliance (SCS)
Please consider the points in the SCS FOI declaration (https://intranet.dhsc gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/scs-declaration-of-
compliance march2023.docx) when completing this case and forward the declaration to the SCS signing off the case with your draft response.
The SCS should be satisfied that all points have been considered before sign-off.
Documents to be released
To avoid hidden information/metadata being released erroneously, please be mindful when reviewing any documents being considered for
release. It is the responsibility of the information holder to provide data in a suitable format.
Please see the ICO's guidance at How to disclose information safely (ico.org.uk). There is a checklist on pages 29 and 30 that you may find
useful.
Redactions
Redactions are the responsibility of the information holder, not the FOI team.
We recommend that you use redaction software. If you do not currently have access to the software, please contact DXC to request to be set
up with Adobe Acrobat Professional. The FOI team are able to support you with a demonstration of using the software if needed.
General guidance on redactions can be found on the intranet (https://intranet dhsc.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Freedom-of-
information-redaction-guidance-September-2023.docx).
Many thanks,
Ministerial Correspondence and Public Enquiries
39 Victoria Street, London, SW1H 0EU
Further information on Freedom of Information (FOI) policy, including full guidance on the application of exemptions, can be found on the FOI intranet
page: Freedom of information | DHSC Intranet
This e-mail and any attachments is intended only for the attention of the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying is not
permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and inform the sender by return e-mail. Any views expressed in this message
are not necessarily those of the Department of Health and Social Care. Please note: Incoming and outgoing email messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with our policy on the use of electronic communications.
This e-mail and any attachments is intended only for the attention of the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying is not
permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and inform the sender by return e-mail. Any views expressed in this message
are not necessarily those of the Department of Health and Social Care. Please note: Incoming and outgoing email messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with our policy on the use of electronic communications.
This e-mail and any attachments is intended only for the attention of the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying is not
permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and inform the sender by return e-mail. Any views expressed in this message
are not necessarily those of the Department of Health and Social Care. Please note: Incoming and outgoing email messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with our policy on the use of electronic communications.
This e-mail and any attachments is intended only for the attention of the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying is not
permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and inform the sender by return e-mail. Any views expressed in this message
are not necessarily those of the Department of Health and Social Care. Please note: Incoming and outgoing email messages are routinely monitored
for compliance with our policy on the use of electronic communications.
This e-mail and any attachments is intended only for the attention of the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying is
not permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all copies and inform the sender by return e-mail. Any views expressed in
this message are not necessarily those of the Department of Health and Social Care. Please note: Incoming and outgoing email messages are
routinely monitored for compliance with our policy on the use of electronic communications.
