Use of data analytics, predictive analytics or algorithmic automated systems for decision-making in Children's Services

The request was successful.

Dear Thurrock Borough Council,
We are submitting the following Freedom of Information Request for documents relating to previous or current uses of data analytics, predictive analytics, or algorithmic automated systems used for processing, risk assessment, scoring systems or automated decision making in relation to child and family services delivered in the jurisdiction of your local authority.

Please can you supply the following information:
1) Has the council used any data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision?
2) Is the council using any data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision?
3) Is the council intending to use data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision?
4) Details of any briefing notes, reports, or summaries relating to the use or potential use of data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision.
5) Any meeting minutes, reports or presentation materials on the efficacy or impact of data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision.
6) Details of any third-party consultants or suppliers of data analytics, predictive analytics or artificial intelligence systems including any contracts, memoranda of understanding, or other agreements (which may include but not exclusively data sharing agreements)

Please note, the timeframe for questions 4-6 is indefinite.
By data analytics we mean the processing of families’ data to draw conclusions about the information it contains and to uncover patterns and insights from it. This may be via computer packages or dashboards.
By predictive analytics, we mean using families’ data to create predictive models that can be used for risk assessment, scoring systems or to inform decision-making.
By artificial intelligence/algorithmic automated systems we mean the process of using families’ data to develop systems that make decisions by automated means. This includes tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as speech recognition and decision-making.
By children, we include all those 0-18 years old
By children’s service provision we include information relating to all services the local authority provides for children and families, including children's social care, education and learning, early years services, youth services and youth offending teams.

If it is not possible to provide the information requested due to the information exceeding the cost of compliance limits identified in s.12 FOIA, please provide advice and assistance as to how I can refine my request, as required under s.16 FOIA.

Yours faithfully,

Val Gillies

Information.Matters@thurrock.gov.uk, Thurrock Borough Council

Thank you for your email. 

Your enquiry is important to us and will be recorded and responded to in
line with respective timeframes.  Our team will monitor the progress of
your enquiry to ensure you receive a timely response.

Data Protection Statement

We will use your information to provide the service requested. We may
share your personal data between our services and with partner
organisations, such as government bodies and the police. We will do so
when it is of benefit to you, or required by law, or to prevent or detect
fraud. To find out more, go to [1]thurrock.gov.uk/privacy. Get free
internet access at libraries and community hubs

Regards,

Rachael Steel

Information Services Manager

 

 

Disclaimer

The information in this e-mail and any attachment(s) are intended to be
confidential and may be legally privileged. Access to and use of its
content by anyone else other than the addressee(s) may be unlawful and
will not be recognised by Thurrock Council for business purposes. If you
have received this message by mistake, please notify the sender
immediately, delete it and do not copy it to anyone else. Thurrock Council
cannot accept any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of this
message as it has been transmitted over a public network.

Any opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of Thurrock Council.

Any attachment(s) to this message has been checked for viruses, but please
rely on your own virus checker and procedures.

Senders and recipients of e-mail should be aware that under the UK Data
Protection and Freedom of Information legislation these contents may have
to be disclosed in response to a request.

All e-mail sent to or from this address will be processed by Thurrock
Council's corporate e-mail system and may be subject to scrutiny by
someone other than the addressee.

This email has been scanned for viruses and malware, and may have been
automatically archived by Mimecast Ltd, an innovator in Software as a
Service (SaaS) for business. Providing a safer and more useful place for
your human generated data. Specializing in; Security, archiving and
compliance. To find out more [2]Click Here.

References

Visible links
1. http://thurrock.gov.uk/privacy
2. http://www.mimecast.com/products/

Information.Matters@thurrock.gov.uk, Thurrock Borough Council

1 Attachment

Dear Sir/Madam,

Thank you for your recent communication which is being managed in line
with the Freedom of Information Act under the above reference number.  The
details of your request are outlined below together with the council’s
response.

Your request and Our Response

1)    Has the council used any data analytics, predictive analytics and or
artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision?

Yes.

2) Is the council using any data analytics, predictive analytics and or
artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision?

Only in relation to the Government’s Supporting Families programme
(previously the Troubled Families Programme).

3) Is the council intending to use data analytics, predictive analytics
and or artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service
provision?

Potentially.

4) Details of any briefing notes, reports, or summaries relating to the
use or potential use of data analytics, predictive analytics and or
artificial intelligence systems to support children’s service provision.

This is a very broad request. In common with every Council in the country,
we use data analytics across various parts of the organisation, including
children’s services, for example, we conduct data analysis to understand
the impact that our services are having on children and families so that
we can commission services more effectively.  More advanced analytics are
used to, for example, create customer views across systems.  Again this is
in common with many other Councils.

Therefore could you be more specific in your request as outlined above we
conduct lots of analysis using data about how our services are
performing.  We use a range of tools of for this including Excel, PowerBI
etc.

5) Any meeting minutes, reports or presentation materials on the efficacy
or impact of data analytics, predictive analytics and or artificial
intelligence systems to support children’s service provision.

Could you be more specific in your request, as outlined above we conduct
lots of analysis using data about how our services are performing.

6) Details of any third-party consultants or suppliers of data analytics,
predictive analytics or artificial intelligence systems including any
contracts, memoranda of understanding, or other agreements (which may
include but not exclusively data sharing agreements).

Again, we need you to be more specific here, we use various consultants
and third party software, increasingly most of the solutions that are in
place or being procured by the Council include more and more sophisticated
data analytics capabilities

You are free to use any information supplied to you for your own use,
including non-commercial research purposes. However, any other type of
re-use, for example, by publishing the information or issuing copies to
the public will require the permission of the copyright owner.

Where the copyright is owned by Thurrock Council, you must apply to the
Council to re-use the information. Please email
[1][Thurrock Borough Council request email] if you wish to re-use the
information you have been supplied. For information where the copyright is
owned by another person or organisation, you must apply to the copyright
owner to obtain their permission.

If you are dissatisfied with the way in which the council have managed
your FOI request you can pursue an Internal Review by contacting us using
the above email address. Your request will be considered by a senior
member of the Information Management Team who will update you with the
outcome of the review. 

If you remain unhappy following the outcome of your Internal Review you
may wish to refer your case to the Information Commissioner’s Office
(ICO), details of this organisation can be found at [2]www.ico.org.uk.
Alternatively they can be contacted on 0303 123 1113. Please be advised
that the ICO will not consider your case until they have confirmation that
you have already been through the Internal Review stage with the council.

 

Kind regards,

 

Fatma Mohamed l Information Governance apprentice l HR, OD &
Transformation

[3]thurrock.gov.uk l l t +44 (0) 1375 652649 l Ext 52342

Thurrock Council, Civic Offices, New Road, Grays, Essex RM17 6SL

 

An ambitious and collaborative community which is proud of its heritage
and excited by its diverse opportunities and future

 

[4]cid:image001.png@01CECE72.3F5FA730

 

Save time, do it online

[5]facebook.com/thurrockcouncil | [6]twitter.com/thurrockcouncil |
[7]https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/access-to-in...
|
[8]https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/information-...

 

Disclaimer

The information in this e-mail and any attachment(s) are intended to be
confidential and may be legally privileged. Access to and use of its
content by anyone else other than the addressee(s) may be unlawful and
will not be recognised by Thurrock Council for business purposes. If you
have received this message by mistake, please notify the sender
immediately, delete it and do not copy it to anyone else. Thurrock Council
cannot accept any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of this
message as it has been transmitted over a public network.

Any opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of Thurrock Council.

Any attachment(s) to this message has been checked for viruses, but please
rely on your own virus checker and procedures.

Senders and recipients of e-mail should be aware that under the UK Data
Protection and Freedom of Information legislation these contents may have
to be disclosed in response to a request.

All e-mail sent to or from this address will be processed by Thurrock
Council's corporate e-mail system and may be subject to scrutiny by
someone other than the addressee.

This email has been scanned for viruses and malware, and may have been
automatically archived by Mimecast Ltd, an innovator in Software as a
Service (SaaS) for business. Providing a safer and more useful place for
your human generated data. Specializing in; Security, archiving and
compliance. To find out more [9]Click Here.

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[Thurrock Borough Council request email]
2. http://www.lgo.org.uk/
3. http://www.thurrock.gov.uk/
5. http://facebook.com/thurrockcouncil
6. http://www.twitter.com/thurrockcouncil
7. https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/access-to-in...
8. https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/information-...
9. http://www.mimecast.com/products/

To whom it may concern

Thank you for your recent response to our FOI request. In your response, you indicated more clarification was needed to be able to provide the information we are seeking. This clarification of our request is as follows:
- Does the local authority hold information about the current or planned use of predictive analytics or artificial intelligence for children's services provision?
- If such information is held, please can you disclose this information, including what is being used/considered for use and the names of consultants, developers or third party software suppliers the local authority is working with to develop or utilise these systems within children's services provision.

As previously offered by means of definition:
By predictive analytics, we mean using families’ data to create predictive models that can be used for risk assessment, scoring systems or to inform decision-making.
By artificial intelligence/algorithmic automated systems we mean the process of using families’ data to develop systems that make decisions by automated means. This includes tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as speech recognition and decision-making.

We appreciate this may need to be registered as a new FOI with the subsequent 20 day response period.
Yours sincerely,

Val Gillies

Information.Matters@thurrock.gov.uk, Thurrock Borough Council

Thank you for your email. 

Your enquiry is important to us and will be recorded and responded to in
line with respective timeframes.  Our team will monitor the progress of
your enquiry to ensure you receive a timely response.

Data Protection Statement

We will use your information to provide the service requested. We may
share your personal data between our services and with partner
organisations, such as government bodies and the police. We will do so
when it is of benefit to you, or required by law, or to prevent or detect
fraud. To find out more, go to [1]thurrock.gov.uk/privacy. Get free
internet access at libraries and community hubs

Regards,

Rachael Steel

Information Services Manager

 

 

Disclaimer

The information in this e-mail and any attachment(s) are intended to be
confidential and may be legally privileged. Access to and use of its
content by anyone else other than the addressee(s) may be unlawful and
will not be recognised by Thurrock Council for business purposes. If you
have received this message by mistake, please notify the sender
immediately, delete it and do not copy it to anyone else. Thurrock Council
cannot accept any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of this
message as it has been transmitted over a public network.

Any opinions expressed in this document are those of the author and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of Thurrock Council.

Any attachment(s) to this message has been checked for viruses, but please
rely on your own virus checker and procedures.

Senders and recipients of e-mail should be aware that under the UK Data
Protection and Freedom of Information legislation these contents may have
to be disclosed in response to a request.

All e-mail sent to or from this address will be processed by Thurrock
Council's corporate e-mail system and may be subject to scrutiny by
someone other than the addressee.

This email has been scanned for viruses and malware, and may have been
automatically archived by Mimecast Ltd, an innovator in Software as a
Service (SaaS) for business. Providing a safer and more useful place for
your human generated data. Specializing in; Security, archiving and
compliance. To find out more [2]Click Here.

References

Visible links
1. http://thurrock.gov.uk/privacy
2. http://www.mimecast.com/products/

Information.Matters@thurrock.gov.uk, Thurrock Borough Council

1 Attachment

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

Please see below further response in respect of your Freedom of
Information Request.  I hope that this clarifies our position.

 

New Question 1:

Does the local authority hold information about the current or planned use
of predictive analytics or artificial intelligence for children's services
provision?

 

Answer1 :

We do not use any data for predictive analytics or AI in the provision of
Children’s Services. We currently use data only in relation to verifying
families that meet the criteria to enter into the Government’s Supporting
Families programme (previously the Troubled Families Programme). NO
AUTOMATED DECISIONS are ever made during any of this process.

 

New Question 2:

If such information is held, please can you disclose this information,
including what is being used/considered for use and the names of
consultants, developers or third party software suppliers the local
authority is working with to develop or utilise these systems within
children's services provision.

 

Answer 2:

Verification of families meeting the criteria to enter the Government’s
Supporting Families programme has been developed using consultancy
services provided by Xantura Ltd.

 

Many thanks

 

Tina Barrell

 

Tina Barrell l Complaints & Information Governance Assistant I HR, OD &
Transformation

[1]thurrock.gov.uk l ext: 64882

Thurrock Council, Civic Offices, New Road, Grays, Essex RM17 6SL

 

Please copy in [2][Thurrock Borough Council request email] in relation to all
FOI matters.

 

Thurrock: an ambitious and collaborative community which is proud of its
heritage and excited by its diverse opportunities and future

[3]cid:image002.png@01D542FF.BD4CAC30

Save time, do it online

[4]facebook.com/thurrockcouncil | [5]twitter.com/thurrockcouncil |
[6]https://www.thurrock.gov.uk/access-to-in...

 

 

From: Val Gillies <[FOI #737155 email]>
Sent: 13 May 2021 16:49
To: [email address]
Subject: Re: FOI 10776 RESPONSE

 

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not
click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know
the content is safe.

 

To whom it may concern

Thank you for your recent response to our FOI request. In your response,
you indicated more clarification was needed to be able to provide the
information we are seeking. This clarification of our request is as
follows:

- Does the local authority hold information about the current or planned
use of predictive analytics or artificial intelligence for children's
services provision?

- If such information is held, please can you disclose this information,
including what is being used/considered for use and the names of
consultants, developers or third party software suppliers the local
authority is working with to develop or utilise these systems within
children's services provision.

As previously offered by means of definition:

By predictive analytics, we mean using families’ data to create predictive
models that can be used for risk assessment, scoring systems or to inform
decision-making.

By artificial intelligence/algorithmic automated systems we mean the
process of using families’ data to develop systems that make decisions by
automated means. This includes tasks normally requiring human
intelligence, such as speech recognition and decision-making.

We appreciate this may need to be registered as a new FOI with the
subsequent 20 day response period.

Yours sincerely,

Val Gillies

show quoted sections